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ICC    #10,862 
Walker,  Cornelius,  1819- 

1907. 
Outlines  of  Christian 


theology 


OUTLINES 


OF 


CHRISTIAN    THEOLOGY 


BY 


Rev.  CORNELIUS  WALKER,  D.D. 

Professor  of  Systematic  Divinity  in  the  Theological  Seminary  of  Virginia 


NEW  YORK 
THOMAS  WHITTAKER 

2  AND  3  Bible  House 
1894 


Copyright,  1894, 
By  THOMAS    WHITTAKBR. 


BDUR  PRINTINO   HOT'SK,    NEW   YORK. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGB 

I.  Theology  and  Religion, 1 

II.  Sources  of  Theological  Tkuth,          .        .        .        .  11 

III.  Canon  op  Scripture  :  That  ok  Old  Testament,          .  19 

IV.  Canon  oe  Scripture  :  That  of  New  Testament,      .  20 
V.  Inspiration  of  Scripture, 34 

VI.  Tradition,  Mystery,  Miracles, 61 

VII.  The  Doctrine  of  God, 74 

VIII.  The  Divine  xIttributes, 87 

IX.  The  Doctrine  of  Trinity, 113 

X.  Creation  and  Origin  of  the  World,        .        .        .       123 

XI.  The  Doctrine  of  Man, 185 

XII.  The  Doctrine  of  Sin, 149 

XIII.  Actual  Sin, IGO 

XIV.  Sin  in  its  Consequences, 166 

XV.  Salvation  from  Sin, 176 

XVI.  Efficacy  op  Christ's  Sufferings,         .        .        .  184 

XVII.  The  Atoning  Mediation, 197 

XVIII.  Christ's  Work  in  its  Application,      ....  202 

XIX.  The  Blessed  Spirit  in  the  Work  of  Salvation,   .  .  209 

XX.  The  Church  and  Sacraments, 219 

XXI.  Angelology, 237 

XXII.  Esciiatology,   .        .        ; 245 


PREFACE. 


The  object  sought  in  the  pages  following  is  to  pre- 
sent in  brief  outline  the  leading  topics  in  a  course  of 
theological  study.  It  is  substantially  that  which  the 
writer  has  pursued  with  his  classes  successively  dur- 
ing the  last  eighteen  or  twenty  years.  The  ultimate 
authority,  as  also  the  source  of  material,  is  that  of  in- 
spired Scripture.  For  full  statement  and  investiga- 
tion of  many  of  the  subjects  discussed,  his  pupils  will 
recognize  the  text-book  used — Knapp's  "  Theology" — ■ 
as  also  others  referred  to — those  of  Dr.  Hodge,  of  Hill, 
of  Dorner,  of  Martensen,  of  Lindsay  Alexander,  and  of 
Yon  Oosterzee.  To  these  may  be  added,  of  more  recent 
date,  those  of  Dr.  Buel,  of  Dr.  Sliedd,  of  Dr.  Strong, 
and  of  Dr.  Hodge,  the  younger.  To  the  earnest  student 
there  is,  in  these  works  and  others  easily  accessible, 
abundant  material  for  full  and  thorough  investigation 
of  every  issue  and  to^^ic  in  Christian  theology. 

But  while  thus  with  the  advanced  student,  the  object 
here  is  to  take  hold  of  and  to  help  the  beginner,  to  in- 
dicate the  substance  and  natural  order  of  the  problems 
with  which  he  is  called  to  deal,  as  also  their  grounds 
of  evidence  and  verification.  At  the  same  time  it  is  to 
be  noted  that  the  interest  in  these  topics  is  not  confined 


Vi  PREFACE. 

to  this  class — the  theological  student  or  candidate  for 
the  ministry.  It  extends  to  a  much  larger  class — intel- 
ligent Christian  readers,  theologians  to  a  certain  degree 
of  all  classes.  These  have  their  rational  interest  in  all 
the  topics  here  presented.  As  mere  technicalities,  so 
far  as  possible,  have  been  avoided,  the  objection  in  this 
respect  to  the  ordinary  reader  has  been  removed.  In 
all  cases,  moreover,  of  quotations  of  the  original  Greek 
and  Hebrew,  the  English  equivalent  is  annexed,  so  as 
to  avoid  all  difficulty  and  obscurity.  With  the  earnest 
prayer  that  it  may  do  its  work  in  the  service  of  Him  to 
whom  it  is  offered,  it  is  commended  to  its  readers. 


Outlines  of  Christian  Theology. 


CHAPTER   I. 

THEOLOGY    AND    RELIGION, 


Theology,  wherein  a  science. — Its  sources  of  material,  natural  and  reveal- 
ed, and  some  of  its  forms  of  investigation  and  exhibition. — How  relig- 
ion different. — Some  of  the  modes  in  which  in  the  New  Testament  it 
is  described. — What  the  science  of  religion. — Relation  of  theological 
and  religious  to  other  sciences.— Their  apparent  conflicts  and  how 
originating. — Wherein  the  philosophy  of  these  different  from  their 
science. 

Theology,  in  its  name,  claims  to  be  a  science.  At 
one  time,  it  was  the  almost  only  acknowledged  science. 
If  we  bear  in  mind  what  is  meant  by  this  word,  we 
shall  see  the  x^ropriety  here  of  its  application.  Science 
is  knowledge  certified,  as  to  its  material  ;  this  material 
finding  its  systemization,  and  unifying  jirincijDle  or 
principles,  in  certain  laws  or  modes  of  sequence,  in- 
variably operative.  The  positivist  and  the  agnostic 
deny  that  there  is  any  such  knowledge  as  to  God, 
either  in  the  world  or  in  specific  revelation.  But  to 
the  theist  such  position  is  irrational.  If  there  be  an 
Author  of  nature,  caiDable  of  originating  and  sustain- 
ing nature,  He  will  be  caj^able  also  of  making  Himself 


2  THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION. 

iTianifest.  Theology  has  to  do  with  the  nature  and  ex- 
tent of  such  manifestation.  It  first  asks,  What  do  we 
lind  in  this  world  of  nature  ?  Is  nature  a  chaos  or  a 
cosmos  ?  Do  we  lind  in  this  world  of  inorganic  and 
organic  being,  relations,  and  connections,  and  depen- 
dencies ?  Do  we  find  the  presence  and  operation  of 
law  ;  relations  of  j^arts  of  the  cosmos  to  each  other,  as 
to  our  capacity  of  comprehension  ?  How  do  these 
make  known  their  Author  ?  Inductive  processes  prop- 
erly come  in  here  ;  are  strictly  scientific ;  as  thus  sci- 
entific, are  iM'operly  theological. 

So,  too,  with  theology,  science  of  God  with  addi- 
tional material :  the  truths  of  natural  manifestation, 
(pavspooffi?,  added  to  and  made  clearer  in  aTrouaXvifn?, 
those  of  specific  revelation.  Given  or  accepting  the 
fact  of  Divine  AuthorshixD  of  nature,  no  objection  can 
be  urged  against  the  assertion  of  such  revelation  ;  and 
there  are  many  features,  in  the  manifestation  of  na- 
ture, that  seem  both  to  promise  and  demand  it.  The 
question,  however,  is  one  of  fact ;  to  be  decided  in 
view  of  the  character  of  the  evidence.  The  work  of 
the  theologian  is  to  examine  this  evidence  and  the 
material  which  it  brings  to  his  knowledge  ;  to  find  out 
what  this  manifestation  of  nature  and  what  this  word 
of  revelation  mean  ;  and,  through  them,  the  character 
and  will  of  their  Divine  Author. 

This,  of  course,  involves  interpretation,  arrangement, 
recognition  of  controlling  and  subordinate  principles, 
distinction  of  facts  and  laws,  laws  from  higher  regula- 
tive X)rinciples,  systemization,  unification.     As  with  all 


THEOLOGY   AND  RELIGION.  3 

other  sciences,  this  is  the  task  of  theology,  the  science 
of  God. 

As  to  the  aspects  under  which  this  material  may  be 
investigated  and  studied,  we  may  briefly  indicate 
them.  Biblical  theology,  for  instance — a  new  term,  or 
at  least  an  old  term  with  a  new  significance — is  that 
which  is  arranged  in  the  order  of  historical  progress  ; 
truth  about  God,  manifesting  Himself,  in  the  primae- 
val, in  the  patriarchal,  the  Mosaic,  the  prophetic,  the 
New  Testament  revelations.  Systematic  theology  has 
in  view  the  unification  of  all  this  material  ;  to  find  in 
it  not  only  jirogress  and  development,  but  a  combined 
whole — a  whole,  in  each  one  of  its  parts,  as  in  their 
organic  unity,  manifesting  the  character  and  purpose 
of  their  Divine  Author.  This  includes  not  only  the 
clear  statement  of  these  truths,  but  their  relations 
of  connection  and  dei)endence.  Historical  theology, 
again,  has  in  view  the  progress  of  thought  and  discus- 
sion, through  which  such  statements  have  reached 
their  present  form,  and  been  agreed  upon  ;  p>olemic, 
the  statement  of  this  truth,  as  related  to  errors  of  pro- 
fessed believers  ;  apologetic,  as  related  to  difficulties 
made  by  unbelievers  ;  and,  last  of  all,  practical  theol- 
ogy, the  effort  to  find  practical  application  in  these 
truths  to  the  heart  and  life,  whether  in  their  sys- 
tematic or  unsystematic  form.  In  all  we  are  dealing 
with  the  same  material :  the  truth  of  God,  truth  about 
God  ;  the  science,  not  the  perfect,  but  the  real  knowl- 
edge of  God,  as  He  is,  and  as  He  stands  revealed  and 
related  to  His  creatures. 


4  THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION. 

In  this  respe(5t,  there  is  a  difference  with  religion. 
"  Religio,"  from  o'elego,  "  scrupulous  service  to  God," 
with  Cicero;  or  "religio,"  from  religo,  "binding  us 
to  Grod,"  with  Lactantius  ;  or,  in  monastic  idea,  relictus, 
from  relinquo,  "  leaving  the  world,"  is  not  so  much  a 
science  as  a  practice.  As  with  all  forms  of  practice, 
religion  may  liave  its  science  ;  but  this  is  not  its  essen- 
tial nature.  It  is  a  knowing  ;  but,  in  such  knowing, 
also  feeling  and  doing.  As  man,  in  his  rational  na- 
ture, is  related  to  God,  seeks  after  Him,  that  he  may 
find  Him,  so  the  truths  of  theology  teach  him  to  exer- 
cise his  capacity  aright.  In  such  exercise  is  religion  : 
the  subjective  appropriation,  in  the  mind  and  heart, 
and  the  working  out  in  the  life,  of  divinely  given 
truth.  This  word  religion,  in  ordinary  usage,  has 
more  than  one  meaning,  and  we  need  distinguish 
them.  A  man's  religion,  for  instance,  or  that  of  a 
community,  is  that  of  his  accepted  system  of  belief — 
in  this  sense  really  the  equivalent  of  his  theology.  So 
again,  it  may,  and  does  sometimes  mean,  the  outward 
form,  the  ritual  and  worship,  of  such  individual  or 
community — their  ecclesiastical  system.  These  inay 
be  accompaniments.  But  there  must  be  something- 
else  :  the  knowing,  and  feeling,  and  doing,  as  to  God, 
and  as  obeying  the  will  of  God. 

The  degrees  in  which  these  terms  are  aT)plicable,  in 
the  diverse  conditions  of  men,  are  varied  and  mani- 
fold. And  yet,  with  all,  the  lowest  as  the  highest,  we 
find  the  essential  elements  :  truth  as  to  God,  theol- 
ogy ;  the  spiritual  nature  of  man,  feeling  after,  and 


THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION.  5 

using  such  truth,  religion.  Whatever  else  may  be 
said  of  human  nature,  it  is  religious  !  ' '  There  is  no 
trouble,"  Dr.  Sj)arrow  used  to  say,  "about  men  hav- 
ing religion  of  some  kind  or  other  ;  the  trouble  is  to 
get  them  to  have  the  right  kind  of  religion."  Sucli 
religious  nature,  in  its  working,  endeavors  to  have  a 
theology.  Wardlaw  alludes  to  the  definitions  "  re- 
ligion, theology  subjectified  ;  theology,  religion  objec- 
tified. "  While  not  fully  exhaustive,  it  exhibits  their 
main  characteristics. 

The  New  Testament  names  of  religion  have  their  sig- 
nificance, cpo^o^  rov  Qsov,  "  the  fear  of  Jehovah,"  of 
the  Old  Testament,  is  the  fear  of  reverence,  dreading 
the  Divine  disapproval,  dreading  the  course  leading  to 
it  ;  ffocpia,  the  "  wisdom"  of  the  Old  Testament,  which 
finds  the  doing  of  God's  will  and  service  not  only  the 
way  of  right,  but  that  of  wisdom  and  welfare  ;  6ou- 
Xeia,  the  service  of  submissive  obedience,  which  finds 
in  the  Divine  law  its  rule  of  affection,  as  of  action  ; 
karpsia,  the  service  not  only  of  unreserved  obedience, 
but  of  grateful  adoration  ;  svXafisla,  the  careful  ser- 
vice, which  finds  in  small  as  in  great  things  exercise  of 
the  sj)irit  of  devotion  ;  Opj/ffKeia,  such  service  finding- 
outward  expression,  especially  as  it  brings  us  in  con- 
tact with  the  needs  of  our  fellow-creatures  ;  svGsfSaia, 
having  the  inward  spirit,  which  gives  value  and  char- 
acter to  everything  else  ;  and,  last  of  all,  odoz,  "  the 
way,"  and  ttkjti^,  "  the  faith,"  in  which  all  these 
forms  of  action  are  quickened  in  the  truths  of  the 
revelation  of  Jesus  Christ. 


6  THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION. 

But,  as  already  intimated,  while  religion,  in  its  essen- 
tial nature,  is  a  service,  not  a  science,  there  is  or  may 
be  a  science  of  religion.  In  it,  for  instance,  there  are 
diversities  of  facts  and  manifestations,  controlling  laws 
and  operations,  a  unifying  principle  with  which  thej' 
are  all  connected.  The  science  of  religion  deals  with 
these  :  the  religious  nature,  the  fact  that  man  has  such 
a  nature,  that  he  is  consciously  and  manifestly  related 
to  a  Higher  Being,  the  object  of  his  thoughts,  his 
fears,  his  hopes,  his  aspirations.  To  trace  out  the 
w^orkings  of  this  nature,  the  operation  of  its  princi- 
ples, as  exhibited  in  the  individual,  in  the  different 
religions  of  the  world,  and  as  modified  by  different 
conceptions  of  Deity— the  occasions  of  any  such  sys- 
tem finding  origin — its  reactive  influence  upon  its  vota- 
ries— all  this  becomes  the  task  of  the  scientist  of  re- 
ligion. Religions  may  thus  be  classified.  Some  may 
be  manifested  as  local,  and  incapable  of  expansion 
from  their  original  centre  ;  others,  of  wider  range, 
but  still  limited  to  certain  conditions  of  climate,  social 
or  moral  advancement ;  others  still  wider,  but,  in 
their  general  result,  morally  and  socially  deteriorative 
—one  claiming  to  be  a  world  religion,  actually  con- 
trolling the  highest  form  of  moral  and  social  civiliza- 
tion, and  ])eneficial  in  its  influence,  as  coming  in  con- 
tact with  and  displacing  others.  Evidently,  in  dealing 
with  the  material  thus  indicated,  and  the  questions 
suggested,  we  are  in  the  domain  of  science. 

And  this  brings  up  an  issue,  at  the  present  moment, 
of  special  interest,  in  connection   with   this   subject : 


THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION.  7 

the  relation,  as  it  is  usually  put,  of  theology,  as  of  re- 
ligion, to  science  ;  more  properly,  the  relation  of  theo- 
logical and  religious  to  j)hysical,  chemical,  biological, 
mental,  or  moral  science.  That  relation,  ideally,  is  one 
of  perfect  harmony,  touching  at  times,  and  at  different 
points,  the  same  material ;  but  in  these  different  rela- 
tions, parts  of  the  same  material,  of  one  great  whole. 
If  we  could  have  a  perfect  theology,  many  of  the  exist- 
ing difficulties  and  conflicts  would  disappear.  But  not 
entirely.  To  secure  that  there  must  not  only  be  a  per- 
fect theology,  but  a  perfect  geology,  or  chemistry,  or 
biology,  or  whatever  the  science  with  which  such  con- 
flict has  been  waged.  As  they  are  all  actually  imper- 
fect, they  are  all  liable  to  come  in  such  conflict. 

Such  conflict,  from  the  non-theological  side,  has 
usually  come  from  one  of  two  sources  :  so-called  scien- 
tific results  unverified  ;  so-called  scientific  results  of 
what  really  belongs,  not  to  science,  but  to  philosophy. 
From  the  theological  side,  such  conflict  comes  some- 
times from  the  misapplication  of  theological  truth  to 
matters  with  which  it  has  no  concern  ;  sometimes,  and 
much  more  frequently,  from  adherence  to  accepted 
scientific  conclusions  of  an  earlier  period.  While  there 
is  always  the  liability,  in  any  new,  real,  or  supposed 
revelation  of  science,  of  the  theological  shout  of  warn- 
ing or  of  contradiction,  there  is  no  less  certain,  and 
usually  first,  in  point  of  time,  the  infidel  scientific 
shout,  that  in  this  new  discovery  theology  and  religion 
are  hopelessly  exploded.  Of  course  there  are  many 
theologians,  and  many  physical  and  other  scientists, 


8  THEOLOGY  AND   RELIGION". 

who  keep  clear  of  everything  of  this  character  ;  who 
know  enough  of  their  own  and  other  departments  of 
knowledge  to  be  above  such  course.  But  here  it  is 
that  most  of  them  origii^ate.  Some  forty  or  fifty  years 
:igo  leading  chemical  explorers  attempted  to  abolish 
the  word  and  the  idea  of  vitality.  Now,  its  existence 
is  not  only  admitted,  but  the  effort  and  anticij^ation  is 
to  evolve  it  out  of  inorganic  matter.  So,  again,  and 
more  recently,  biologists  found  species  and  variations 
so  fixed  and  limited  in  their  caj)acity  of  transition, 
that  the  variations  of  the  human  race,  as  to  origin, 
were  found  impossible  in  any  one  of  them.  And,  still 
more  recently,  this  capacity  of  variation  has  become  so 
expanded  that  it  includes,  not  only  all  the  varieties  of 
the  human  race,  but  many,  if  not  all,  of  the  lower 
orders  of  creation.  Theologians,  in  the  mean  time,  ad- 
hered to  the  idea  of  life  as  a  reality  ;  to  the  origin  of 
the  race,  in  the  divinely  created  man  ;  to  the  creation 
of  that  man,  in  the  Divine  image  of  rationality,  and 
moral  and  spiritual  being.  How  far  are  these  asser- 
tions of  theology  adjustable  to  those  affirmed  by  sci- 
ence is  the  future  problem,  alike  of  the  theological  as 
of  the  physical  and  biological  scientist.  Such  adjust- 
ment can  only  be  anticij)ated,  as  the  rightful  claims  of 
both  are  fully  acknowledged  and  accepted. 

A  living  writer  in  one  of  our  popular  science  month- 
lies has  endeavored  to  show  the  opposition  of  theolo- 
gians to  the  progress  of  science.  When  he  gets 
through,  as  he  does  not  seem  to  have  quite  finished, 
he  will  find  quite  as  abundant  material,  used  in  the 


THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION.  9 

same  way,  to  demonstrate  the  opposition  of  scientists 
to  such  progress.  The  average  scientist,  as  the  average 
theologian,  is  familiar  with  the  science  imbibed  in  his 
youth,  or  boyhood,  as  infallible  and  unchangeable  ; 
and  each  alike,  on  the  scientific  grounds  thus  accepted, 
opposes  the  scientific  novelty.  There  is  scarcely  an 
instance  of  any  great  scientific  discovery  which  would 
not  afford  an  illustration.         , 

And  here,  it  may  be  asked,  is  there  not  also  a  iDhi- 
losophy  of  religion  and  of  theology,  as  of  everything 
else  ?  There  is,  of  course  ;  but  it  is  very  different 
from  their  science.  Science,  as  we  have  seen,  has  to 
do  with  phenomena,  facts,  laws,  unifying  principles  ; 
or,  as  the  schoolmen  would  have  said,  with  "  quiddi- 
ties, "  the  quid^  the  quod^  and  the  quomodo.  Philoso- 
phy has  to  do  with  them  in  the  quo,  with  the  cur  and 
queer e.  Philosophy  has  been  called  the  science  of  first 
principles.  If  by  this  be  meant  the  principles  to  be 
assumed,  in  all  science  and  scientific  investigation,  it 
may  be  admitted.  But,  evidently,  we  have  gotten 
away  from  the  ordinary  conception  of  a  science.  The 
philosophy  of  a  thing  is  its  rationale,  its  immediate  or 
ultimate  cause.  If,  therefore,  a  science,  it  is  the  sci> 
ence  of  causes  ;  that  in  which  the  phenomena  and  their 
laws  alike  find  explanation.  This  ultimate  Cause  is 
the  Divine  Source  and  Origin  of  things  ;  its  first  prin- 
ciples, what  may  be  called  secondary  causes.  With 
these,  supposed  or  real,  science  begins.  In  view  of 
them,  it  ventures  or  reaches  certain  conclusions  ;  in 
gome  cases  correctly,  in  others  incorrectly. 


10  THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION. 

We  may,  therefore,  briefly  sum  uj)  the  result  of  our 
discussion  by  saying  that  theology  is  occupied  with 
and  exhibits  the  material  of  truth  about  Grod,  and  His 
relations  to  the  world  and  to  men,  certified,  systema- 
tized, unified  ;  that  religion  is  the  knowing,  feeling, 
and  doing,  as  the  effect  of  these  truths,  subjectively 
approi)riated  ;  and  more  or  less  wrought  into  the  life. 
The  philosophy  of  these  is  the  divinely  given  religious 
nature,  as  related  to  its  Divine  Author,  to  the  divine- 
ly given  provision  in  Him,  for  that  nature — to  its  full 
development  and  expansion  of  capacity,  as  of  blessed- 
ness. 

Professor  Cooke's  "  Credentials  of  Science  the  Warrant  of  Faith." 

Dawson's  "  Origin  of  the  World  According  to  Revelation  and  Sci- 
ence. ' ' 

Kiunis's  "  Harmony  of  Bible  with  Science  ;"  Reusch's  "  Nature  and 
the  Bible." 

Harris's  "  Philosophical  Basis  of  Theism." 

Duke  of  Argyle's  "  Unity  of  Nature"  and  "  Reign  of  Law." 

Calderwood's  "  Relations  of  Science  and  Religion." 

"  Christianity  and  Science,"  Professor  Peabody. 


CHAPTER  II. 

SOURCES   OF  THEOLOGICAL   TRUTH. 

The  two  extremes  of  upon  this  subject  of  the  naturalist  and  the  purely 
supernaturalist,  and  the  contrasted  teaching  of  Scripture. — Relations 
of  natural  theology  and  revelation. — Revelation  rests  upon  specific 
evidence. — Place  here  of  natural  presuppositions. — How  revelation 
related  to  natural  capacity. 

Theology  implies  a  known  God.  How  is  He  known  ? 
In  what  manner  has  He  actually  made  Himself  known  ? 
How  does  He  still  bring  Himself  to  human  knowl- 
edge ?  Two  extreme  answers  to  this  question  have 
been  given.  One  finds  such  knowledge  given  in  the 
manifestations  of  nature  and  as  entirely  confined  to 
these.  The  other  finds  it  in  special  revelation  ;  and 
all  religious  truth,  in  human  conviction,  of  course,  in 
many  cases,  with  perversions  and  distortions,  coming 
through  primaeval  revelation.  The  first  is  that  of 
deistic  naturalism,  with  its  a  pr'wr'i  postulate  of  the 
impossibility  of  the  miraculous  or  supernatural.  The 
second  is  the  extreme  of  the  devout  believer,  jealous  of 
any  authority,  or  of  any  claim  of  Divine  truth,  in  any- 
thing except  the  divinely  revealed  word.  The  first 
implies  the  absurdity  that  He  who  created  man  capa- 
ble of  communicating  and  of  receiving  communica- 
tions by  spoken  and  written  words,  is  Himself  want- 


12  SOURCES  OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH. 

ing  in  the  capacity  which  He  conferred  upon  His 
creatures.  The  second,  that  He  who  created  and  fills 
the  world  with  His  wisdom,  and  goodness,  and  power, 
is  nowhere,  in  that  world,  to  be  found. 

In  each  of  these  extremes  is  a  truth,  if  not  distort- 
ed, at  least  one-sided.  Taking  the  dictate  of  Scri])- 
ture,  we  find  both  of  these,  as  sources  of  truth  about 
God,  clearly  recognized.  Scripture,  in  its  very  exist- 
ence and  nature,  involves  the  claim  that  G-od,  "in 
different  manners  and  different  degrees,"  makes  Him- 
self known,  through  His  selected  human  agents,  in  His 
authoritatively  sf)oken  and  written  word.  No  less 
does  Scripture  affirm  and  imply  that  He  who  thus 
extraordinarily  reveals  Himself  does  it,  also,  ordi- 
narily, in  His  works — in  the  orderly  arrangement  of 
natural  i)henomena  and  their  operations,  the  cosmos 
external  ;  in  the  inner  phenomena  of  human  conscious- 
ness, knoAving,  feeling,  willing,  self-approving,  and 
self-condemning,  the  inner  cosmos  of  rational  and 
moral  experience.  The  nineteenth  Psalm,  for  instance, 
implies  and  affirms  both  of  these  sources.  The  first 
six  verses  tell  of  the  manifestations  of  God  in  the  ex- 
ternal Avorld.  The  remaining  eight  tell  of  the  revela- 
tion of  His  law.  Law,  torah,  here,  is  the  equivalent 
not  only  of  revealed  statute,  but  of  revealed  doing  and 
character.  So,  in  the  first  chapter  of  the  Ejnstle  to 
the  Romans,  the  manifestation  of  God,  in  His  created 
works,  and  the  human  obligation  arising  therefrom,  is 
clearly  asserted.  In  the  second  chapter  of  this  same 
epistle,  the  obedience  of  the  heathen  to  the  law  in  theii' 


SOURCES   OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH.  13 

heart  implies  the  same  fact,  tlie  capacity  of  knowing 
this  law,  as  also  its  Divine  Author.  The  "  unknown 
God"  at  Athens  (Acts  17:22-31),  it  is  implied,  is 
known  enough  to  be  worshipped.  Further,  that  in 
His  real  character,  He  ought  to  have  been  better  known 
and  differently  worshipped.  So  too  with  the  remon- 
strance of  Paul  and  Barnabas  to  the  Lycaonians  (Acts 
14  :  17).  In  these  last  cases,  knowledge,  capacity  of 
knowledge,  and  accountability  for  its  exercise  are 
clearly  implied.  At  the  same  time,  knowledge  addi- 
tional is  spoken  of  as  imparted. 

The  first  of  these  gives  us  natural  theology,  the 
second  that  of  Scripture.  The  first  related  to  the  sec- 
ond, as  part  to  the  whole  ;  as  also  illustrative  and  con- 
firmative. Revelation  includes  natural  theology  plus 
its  own  peculiar  material.  This  fact  of  revelation  rests 
upon  specific  evidence.  A  priori  presumptions  may 
anticipate,  but  cannot  prove  it.  At  the  same  time, 
these  presumptions  have  their  value.  They  anticipate 
difficulties,  and  predispose  to  a  certain  conclusion. 
Some  of  these  may  be  briefly  considered. 

First  of  all,  specific  revelation  seems  to  be  a  necessity 
to  the  majority  of  the  race  ;  as  reaching,  in  its  intelli- 
gibility, all  classes,  all  orders  of  mind  and  capacity. 
Supposing  a  perfect  theology,  in  the  philosophy  of 
Plato  ;  to  how  many  could  it  be  imxmrted  'I  Revela- 
tion is  the  via  hremssima  of  Divine  wisdom,  in  its 
communications,  to  human  ignorance  and  incai)acity. 
It  is  for  all.  And  it  is  in  a  form  and  manner  to  reach 
all. 


14  SOURCES  OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH. 

Further,  it  meets  another  necessity  of  human  na- 
ture, in  the  fact  of  its  authoritative  character.  This  is 
a  want  of  the  cultivated  and  philosophical,  as  well  as 
the  weak  and  ignorant.  Has  God  spoken  ?  The  dis- 
tinct affirmative  to  this  is  as  much  needed  by  Newton 
or  Kepler  as  by  the  humblest  peasant  or  the  little 
child. 

Still  further,  such  necessity  may  be  seen,  in  the 
material  of  revelation,  as  supplementary  to  that  of  na- 
ture. Natural  theology  raises  questions  and  encoun- 
ters problems  that  it  cannot  solve.  It  cannot  help 
asking,  but  cannot  answer.  "  You  may  even  give 
over,"  says  one  heathen  ^philosopher,  "  all  hopes  of 
amending  men's  manners  for  the  future,  unless  God  be 
pleased  to  send  some  other  person  to  instruct  us." 
"  Which  of  these  oj)inions  is  true,  some  God  must  tell 
us,"  is  the  language  of  another.  The  material  of 
revelation  proves  its  necessity. 

Last  of  all,  revelation,  in  the  light  of  experience, 
seems  a  necessity  to  the  highest  and  purest  form  of 
civilization.  Revealed  religion  rules  and  blesses  the 
world  ;  its  power  and  influences  point  to  its  Divine 
origin. 

Revelation"  as  Related  to  Human  Capacity. — 
Connected  with  this  topic,  the  sources  of  material  of 
Divine  truth,  are  two  others,  as  specially  related  to 
such  ti'uth  contained  in  Scripture,  One  of  these  is  the 
question  of  interpretation  ;  the  other  is  that  of  the  re- 
lation of  reason,  or  human  capacity,  to  the  substance 
of  Divine  revelation.     As  to  the  first,  it  may  be  said 


SOURCES   OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH.  15 

that  whatever  diversities,  in  the  past,  as  to  allegorical, 
mystical,  symbolical,  or  spiritual  interpretation,  it  is 
now  an  almost  universally  admitted  principle  that,  as 
the  revelations  of  law,  of  duty,  of  the  Divine  dealings 
and  character,  are  given  in  human  language,  and  in 
the  forms  of  expression  prevalent  among  their  recipi- 
ents, so,  by  the  ordinary  laws  of  language,  their  mean- 
ing must  be  ascertained.  All  other  things  being  equal, 
the  student  who  is  best  able  to  reproduce  the  condi- 
tions, objective  and  subjective,  of  those  to  whom  the 
revelations  were  given,  will  be  most  successful  in  get- 
ting their  meaning.  If  the  language  and  its  connec- 
tion indicate  literality,  it  must,  then,  be  literally  inter- 
preted ;  if  figurative,  symbolical,  or  allegorical,  then 
by  the  principles  of  each  resj)ectively.  An  undevout 
scholar,  indeed,  may  in  such  case,  and  carrying  out 
these  principles,  fail  in  getting  the  life  and  heart  of 
that  with  which  he  is  dealing  ;  as  may  one  of  an  op- 
posite character,  although  comparatively  ignorant, 
fully  appreciate  them.  This,  however,  does  not  affect 
the  general  xirinciple.  The  desideratum  is  both  of 
these  qualifications :  the  scholarship  pervaded  and 
quickened  by  a  spirit  of  genuine  earnestness  and  de- 
votion. 

The  more  difficult  and  contested  question  is  the  rela- 
tion of  reason,  or  human  capacity,  to  these  truths, 
when  clearly  and  m.anifestly  revealed.  The  word  rea- 
son, it  is  here  to  be  noted,  in  ordinary  usage,  flits 
often  without  any  recognition  of  the  fact,  either  by 
speaker  or  hearer,  from  one  to  the  other  of  four  dis- 


16  SOURCES  OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH. 

tiiict  significations.  Sometimes,  for  instance,  it  means 
tlie  rationally  intuitive  power  of  cognizing  necessary 
truth,  the,  vov;  ;  sometimes  the  argumentative  capac- 
ity, the  analytic  and  synthetic  power,  the  Xoyiffjuo? ; 
sometimes  the  capacity  of  appreciating  or  understand- 
ing, the  diavoia  ;  and,  then,  inchiding  all  these,  it 
means  the  whole  mental  capacity.  The  two  main 
points  of  issue  are,  first,  the  power  of  reason  or  human 
capacity  to  receive  truths  incomprehensible  ;  secondly, 
the  capacity  of  reason  or  the  necessary  intuitive 
power,  to  receive  what  is  really  contradictory  to  its 
principles.  To  state  the  first  clearly  and  distinctly  is 
to  answer  it.  Human  capacity,  or  reason,  in  this 
sense,  is  constantly  in  the  actual  reception  and  usage 
of  natural  truths  that  are  incomi^rehensible.  Omnia 
exeunt  in  mysterinm.  Human  language  and  expres- 
sions are  full  of  incomprehensibles,  from  the  infini- 
tudes of  space  and  duration  to  the  infinitesimals  of  the 
atom  and  the  molecule.  If  so  in  nature,  then  also  in 
revelation.  The  distinction  of  apprehending  and  com- 
prehending properly  comes  in  here.  We  apprehend 
and  discriminate,  and  find  relations  among  things,  in 
certain  respects  incomprehensible.  If  such  incompre- 
hensible fact  come  to  us  in  revelation,  we  must  accept 
it  as  we  do  with  those  that  come  to  us  in  nature. 

The  second  of  these  questions  has  given  more  diffi- 
culty— the  relation  of  intuitive  reason,  not  to  incom- 
prehensibles, but  to  contradictions,  truths,  or  asserted 
truths  in  conflict  Avith  the  principles  of  the  rational 
nature,  the  intellectual  or  moral  rational.     In  a  genu- 


SOURCES  OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH.  17 

fne  revefation  and  a  really  enliglitened  reason,  such  con- 
flict is,  of  course,  impossible.  A  contradictory  is  self- 
destructive.  The  assertion  of  a  whole  greater  than  the 
sum  of  its  parts  ;  of  a  circular  triangle  ;  of  crossing- 
parallel  lines  ;  of  a  malignant  benevolence  ;  or  of  filthy 
purity,  are  all  of  this  class.  Reason  not  only  can- 
not construe,  it  cannot  receive  them  as  objects  of 
contemplation,  must  reject  them.  If  anything  appar- 
ently of  this  character  were  found  in  a  professed  reve- 
lation, it  would  have  to  be  rejected  either  as  vitiating 
the  whole,  or  as  a  human  interpolation,  or  as  misunder- 
stood. The  unbelieving  effort  has  been  to  bring  some 
of  the  material  of  the  Old  Testament,  especially  of  its 
legislation,  under  this  category.  Some  cases,  doubt- 
less, of  these  are  difficulties  and  incomprehensibilities  ; 
and  the  effort  must  be  to  find  out  their  explanation  ; 
to  avoid  the  issue  of  rational  and  moral  contradic- 
tion. 

To  sum  up  this  i)oint,  we  may  say  the  relation  of 
reason,  of  human  capacity  to  revelation,  is  to  ascer- 
tain and  verify  the  fact  of  such  revelation  ;  to  find  out 
its  meaning  ;  the  different  ways  in  which  that  mean- 
ing is  exhibited.  When  such  meaning  brings  to  view 
hitherto  undiscernible  truths,  they  must  be  reverently 
accepted  upon  the  authority  of  their  Divine  Author. 
His  revelations  cannot  be  subjected  to  natural  and 
finite  limitations.  In  cases  of  apparent  conflict  with 
rational  principles,  intellectual  or  moral,  as  both  of 
these  proceed  from  Him,  that  conflict  is  only  aj)par- 
ent.     Patient  and  reverential  investigation,  and  sus- 


18  SOURCES  OF  THEOLOGICAL  TRUTH. 

pense  as  to  liasty  judgment,  will,  in  due  time,  remove 
the  apparent  difficulty. 

Robson's  "  The  Bible  ;  its  Revelsition,  Inspiration,  and  Evidence," 
Briggs's  "  The  Bible,  the  Church,  and  Reason." 
Andrew's  "  God's  Revelation  of  Himsi-lf  to  Man." 
Bruce's  "  Cliief  End  of  Revelation." 
Ollsen's  "  Revelation,  Universal  and  Special." 


CHAPTER  III. 

CANON    OF    SCRIPTURE  :     THAT    OF    OLD    TESTAMENT. 

Meaning  of  the  word. — Collection  of  sacred  books  recognized  by  Christ 
and  His  Apostles. — Language  of  Josephus,  of  Philo,  Son  of  Sirach, 
and  the  Talmud. — How  Canon  probably  formed. — Allusions  to  it  in 
early  Christian  writers. 

The  acceptance  of  the  idea  of  a  record  of  revelation 
immediately  raises  the  question,  What  is  this  record  ; 
what  its  bounds  and  limitations  ?  Revelation  might 
be  oral,  and  only  for  the  individual  and  his  contempo- 
raries. It  might  involve  a  divinely  insi^iring  influence 
upon  the  recipient,  and  yet  be  only  for  immediate 
and  present  purposes.  Again,  it  might  be  for  all  time 
and  for  all  men  ;  revealed  to  inspired  men,  and  placed 
in  permanent,  written  form,  for  all  coming  genera- 
tions. By  this  last  we  describe  the  canon  of  Scripture, 
the  list  of  divinely  revealed  books,  given  through  in- 
spired men. 

This  word  canon,  it  is  to  be  borne  in  mind,  has  other 
significations.  It  meant,  in  earlier  usage,  the  canon 
or  list  of  articles  of  faith  to  be  accepted — in  other 
words,  a  creed.  So,  too,  it  was  used  to  designate  the 
list  of  books,  inspired  and  uninsioired  alike,  to  be  read 
in  the  churches.  Again,  and  in  more  modern  usage,  it 
almost  exclusively  means  the  list  of  the  inspired  books 


20     CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT. 

of  Scripture.  In  tlie  second  of  these,  the  canon  of  the 
Church  of  England  includes  some  of  the  aj^ocryphal 
books.  In  the  third  sense,  the  canon  of  this  Church  is 
that  of  the  divinely  inspired  books  of  the  Old  and 
New  Testaments.  For  our  purpose,  we  put  aside  all 
other  meanings,  and  confine  ourselves  to  the  last,  the 
inspired,  authoritative  books  of  Holy  Scripture.  How 
does  it  appear  that  such  a  collection  was  made  ?  On 
what  grounds  is  it  now  accepted  ?  We  naturally  begin 
with  the  canon  of  the  Old  Testament. 

Taking  New  Testament  times  as  our  point  of  depar- 
ture, we  find  clear  indication  of  the  existence  of  such 
collection  in  the  language  of  our  Lord  and  that  of  the 
apostles.  "  Scripture,"  "  the  Scriptures,"  "  the  law," 
"  the  law  and  the  proi^liets,"  "  the  law,  the  prophets, 
and  the  Psalms,"  are  some  of  its  modes  of  designation. 
With  these,  at  times,  is  mention  of  particular  writers 
— Moses,  David,  Isaiah — ^as  familiar  alike  to  speaker 
and  hearers,  and  as  of  supreme  Divine  authority. 

Contemporaneous  with  these  New  Testament  writers 
and  speakers  are  two  Jewish  writers,  using  similar 
language,  and  from  whom  a  similar  conclusion,  as  to 
these  books,  may  be  derived.  Philo,  born  B.C.  20, 
wrote  probably  about  a.d.  30  or  40*  Josephus,  born 
87  A.D.,  wrote  about  85  or  90.  Philo,  thus  about 
twenty  years  of  age  at  the  birth  of  our  Lord,  was  about 
fifty  at  the  time  of  the  crucifixion  ;  Josephus,  ])orn 
about  the  time  of  the  conversion  of  St.  Paul,  and 
dying  about  the  same  time  as  St.  John,  as  Jewish  con- 
temporaries of  the  Jewish  s[)eakers  and  writers  of  the 


CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT.     2 1 

New  Testament,  could  only  mean  the  same  collection 
of  authoritative  Jewish  Scriptures.  The  contempora- 
neousness of  the  two  classes  of  speakers  and  writers 
excludes  the  possibility  of  change  or  of  different  mate- 
rial. Philo  speaks  of  it,  as  does  our  Lord,  in  its 
threefold  division — of  "  laws,  oracles  uttered  by 
prophets,  hymns  and  other  books."  Josephus  speaks 
of  it  as  the  "  live  books  of  Moses,  thirteen  prophetical 
books,  four  of  hymns  and  directions  of  life."  Agree- 
ing with  this  in  substance  is  the  threefold  division 
of  the  son  of  Sirach,  about  260  B.C.,  of  "  the  law,  the 
prophets,  and  the  remaining  books."  Accordant  with 
this  is  the  languge  of  the  Talmud — beginning,  as  to  its 
material,  soon  after  the  time  of  Ezra— as  to  "  the  law, 
the  prophets,  and  the  writings  ;' '  and  the  fact  of  their 
translation  into  the  Septuagint  about  200  b.c. 

Taking,  therefore,  the  time  of  our  Lord,  we  find  this 
threefold  division  in  His  language  as  in  that  of  His 
Jewish  contemporaries  ;  this,  in  substance,  agreeing 
with  that  of  the  Talmud,  the  son  of  Sirach,  and  the 
Septuagint.  The  different  Jewish  schools  of  thought — 
the  Palestinian,  the  Babylonian,  and  the  Alexandrian 
— agreeing  substantially  upon  this  point,  would  be  a 
check  upon  each  other  in  any  attempted  change  or 
variation.  Two  facts  are  thus  made  manifest :  first, 
the  existence  of  this  collection ;  secondly,  that  its 
books  held  a  peculiar  iDosition  of  i^re-eminence.  They 
were  not,  as  many  suppose,  the  whole  of  Jewish  or 
Hel)rew  litei'ature  extant  at  this  or  any  other  period. 
There  is  evidence  of  other — the  apocryphal  books,  for        ^ 


22     CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT. 

instance  ;  and  of  others  earlier  and  later,  not  contained 
or  recognized  in  the  Hebrew  canon. 

Accordant  with  this  is  the  testimony  of  Christian 
writers  of  the  three  or  four  centuries  following.  Jus- 
tin Martyr,  writing  during  the  first  half  of  the  second 
century,  mentions  sixteen  of  the  Old  Testament  writ- 
ers in  his  controversy  with  the  Jew  Try[)ho.  The  Tal- 
mud, already  alluded  to  as  contemporaneous  in  its  oral 
form  with  Siracli  and  the  Sex3tuagint,  put  in  its  writ- 
ten form  during  the  first  four  centuries  of  Christian- 
ity, in  this  latter  speaks  of  this  same  collection,  and  of 
the  authorship  of  particular  books.  With  slight  varia- 
tion the  Old  Testament  canon,  in  the  catalogue  of 
Melito  of  Sardis,  179,  corresponds  with  that  of  these 
Jewish  writers.  The  same  may  be  said  of  that  of  Ori- 
gen,  220,  of  Athanasius,  325,  of  Cyril,  Augustine,  and 
Jerome,  of  the  next  two  centuries.  Later  Jewish  cata- 
logues have  the  same  threefold  division  of  the  law,  the 
prophets,  and  the  Hagiographa.  In  some  cases  they 
divide  them  differently  in  their  parts,  include  smaller 
books  differently  in  longer  ones.  The  Apocrypha,  never 
accepted  by  the  Jews,  was  added  by  the  Council  of 
Trent.  But  it  is  not  fully  accejDted  even  by  the  best 
scholarshixD  of  the  Church  of  Rome. 

How  this  canon  was  formed,  and  what  the  succes- 
sive steps  to  its  completion,  it  is  difficult  to  determine. 
While  there  is  no  specific  historical  evidence  sustaining 
the  tradition  of  its  formation  l)y  Ezra,  yet  the  circum- 
stances of  his  position  and  times,  as  his  peculiar  work, 
would  naturally  lead  to  something  of  this  character. 


CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT.     23 

The  argument  in  such  case  is  :  any  other  man,  of 
ordinary  good  sense,  having  Ezra's  task,  and  with 
these  materials  at  hand,  would  have  pursued  the 
course  supposed.  The  same  may  be  said  as  to  Nelie- 
miah.  Certainly  it  must  have  been  begun  at  this  time, 
but  most  probably  at  an  earlier  date.  The  effort  of 
Jewish  scholarship,  as  of  Jewish  religious  feeling, 
would  be  to  co-operate  in  such  undertaking.  Evi- 
dence of  such  scholarship  and  of  such  religious  inter- 
est is  not  wanting.  The  material  of  the  Talmud 
and  the  Targums  indicates  usage  of  these  books, 
and  interest  in  them  ;  imply  familiarity  with  them, 
and  reverence  toward  them.  The  hostile  effort  of 
Antiochus  Ex)iphanes  to  destroy  the  sacred  books 
of  Judaism  would  by  reaction,  as  with  the  Chris- 
tians under  Domitian,  with  books  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, lead  to  the  opposite  result  of  their  fuller 
verification.  As  already  intimated,  they  are  all 
found  translated  in  the  Septuagint.  The  Hebrew 
canon,  in  the  time  of  our  Lord,  is  now  that  of  modern 
Judaism. 

The  simplest  explanation  of  these  facts  is,  that  these 
books,  each  one,  as  actually  given,  and  at  the  time,  in 
its  known  author,  verified  itself  as  a  divinely  given 
book,  as  was  the  case  subsequently  with  those  of  the 
New  Testament.  Allusions  are  made  to  portions  of  them 
in  Old  Testament  narrative.  The  five  books  of  Moses,  as 
found  among  the  Samaritans,  must  have  been  collect- 
ed, and  in  shape,  not  very  long  after  the  time  of  Ezra. 
Directions  are  given  in  Old  Testament  narrative,  re- 


24    ('AN( )N  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT. 

quiring  other  j)ortions  to  be  put  in  writing.  "  We 
know,"  says  Professor  Cave,  "that  Moses  set  an  ex- 
ample of  an  authoritative  canon  in  his  five  books  of 
the  law.  There  is  good  reason  for  saying  that  tlie 
schools  of  the  j^ropliets,  following  the  Mosaic  examj^le, 
constituted  themselves  the  guardians  of  the  several 
lU'ophetical  writings,  which  they  preserved,  to  form  a 
steadily  increasing  whole,  until  the  oj)en  vision  of 
prophecy  ceased."  The  work  of  Ezra,  as  of  Jewish 
Sf^holarship,  like  that  of  Christian,  with  the  books  of 
the  New  Testament,  would  be  to  separate  them  and 
keep  them  separate  from  all  others.  And  the  fact  of 
the  universal  acceptance  of  this  result  affords  pre- 
sumption that  it  was  done  in  a  satisfactory  manner. 
The  hyjiothesis  of  this,  as  the  work  of  a  divinely  in- 
sjured  man  or  men  of  "  canonic  insx)iration,"  to  use 
the  language  of  the  writer  just  quoted,  fully  meets, 
and  only  fully  meets  all  the  facts,  and  the  demands  of 
the  case.  The  accei:)ted  work  of  after  scholarship  is 
thus  simply  to  ascertain  what  has  been  done  ;  what 
are  really  these  divinely  given  books  to  Grod's  chosen 
people. 

Questions  as  to  particulars  of  any  of  these  books, 
and  their  writers  or  sources,  say  of  the  portions  of 
Genesis,  the  Pentateuch  or  Hexateuch,  of  the  Deutero- 
Tsaiah,  of  the  Book  of  Daniel,  or  the  Maccabean 
Psalms,  these  belong  to  other  departments  of  investi- 
gation. However  answered,  the  canon  as  it  stands 
does  so  upon  the  later  authentication  of  our  Lord,  as 
of  earlier  and  later  Jewish  scholarship  ;  as,  also,  upon 


CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  OLD  TESTAMENT.     25 

the  judgment  of  modern  Judaism,  and  of  the  Christian 
Church  accej)ting  it. 

Etheridge's  "  latroduction  to  Hebrew  Literature." 
Cave's  "  Inspiration  of  the  Old  Testament." 
Simon's  "  Theocratic  Literature." 
Kirkpatrick's  "  Divine  Library  of  the  Old  Testament." 
Girdlestone's  "  Foundations  of  the  Faith." 
Rabbi  Wise's  "  Pronaos  of  the  Old  Testament." 
Paterson  Smith's  "  Old  Documents  and  the  New  Bible." 
Buhl's  "  Cauon  and  Text  of  the  Old  Testament." 
Driver's  "  Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CANON   OF   SCRIPTURE  :    THAT   OF   NEW   TESTAMENT, 

The  two  questions. — How  to  be  answered. — Early  traces  of  usage  of 
the  four  Gospels. — Patristic  testimony  as  to  these  and  other  books  of 
New  Testament. — That  of  heretical  and  heathen  writers.— Early  ver- 
sions.— Indications  of  early,  and  wide  circulation. 

Two  questions,  tacitly  implied  in  the  preceding  dis- 
cussion, as  to  the  canon  of  the  Old  Testament,  have 
been  more  specifically  raised  in  regard  to  that  of  the 
New  Testament.  First,  What  constitutes  a  canonical 
book  ?  secondly,  When  was  the  canon,  the  list  of  them 
as  a  whole,  completed  ?  To  the  first  has  been  the 
reply  :  The  fact  of  inspired  authorship,  either  apostles 
or  contemporaneous  disciples  of  prophetic  endow- 
ment ;  these  last  known,  accepted,  and  thus  endorsed 
by  the  2:)rimitive  Church.  Out  of  the  twenty-seven 
books  of  the  N'ew  Testament,  twenty-three  are  by 
apostles,  and,  therefore,  included  in  the  promise 
of  the  Master,  as  to  the  Paraclete,  to  give  them 
all  needed  Divine  aid,  in  the  deliverance  of  their 
testimony.  Paul,  as  called  to  the  apostleship,  of 
course  as  an  apostle,  came  within  the  terms  of  this 
assurance ;  specifically  claims  to  sj)eak  and  write 
under  Divine  influence  and  with  Divine  authority. 

Besides  the  ax30stles,  however,  we  find  mention  of 


CANOJSr  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT.     27 

other  disciples  endowed  with  j^rophetic  gifts  :  Agabiis, 
twice  alluded  to  ;  Ananias,  in  connection  with  the  con- 
version of  Paul ;  as  also  allusions  to  similar  gifts  in 
one  of  the  epistles  to  the  Church  at  Corinth.  The 
association  of  St.  Luke  with  the  Apostle  Paul,  and  of 
Mark  with  Peter,  of  course  gave  them  peculiar  oppor- 
tunities for  the  preparation  of  their  books.  But  the 
unquestioning  reception  of  those  books  from  the  be- 
ginning, the  manner  of  that  receiDtion,  as  on  a  level 
with  the  others,  and  this  by  the  whole  Church,  would 
indicate  the  recognition  by  contemporaries  of  their  own 
divinely  conferred  qualifications  for  such  undertaking. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews. 
If  by  St.  Paul,  of  course  apostolic  and  insj^ired  ;  if  by 
Aj)ollos,  then  as  one  divinely  fitted  for  his  work  ;  if 
by  St.  Luke,  then  either  as  shaping  the  material  of  St. 
Paul,  or,  as  in  his  gospel,  from  his  own  divinely  con- 
ferred endowment.  The  fact  in  regard  to  them  all  is 
this,  their  acceptance  by  those  to  whom  they  were 
given  ;  the  testimony,  thus  involved,  as  to  known 
X)rox3lietic  capacity.  The  testimony  of  subsequent  wit- 
nesses. Christian,  heretical,  and  heathen  writers,  is  not 
simjDly  to  an  opinion,  but  to  a  fact ;  not  that  they,  as 
individuals,  think  these  to  be  divinely  authenticated, 
but  that  they  have  been  thus  accei)ted  from  the  begin- 
ning. In  answer  to  the  first  question,  therefore,  we 
say,  the  canon  is  thus  the  list  of  the  writings  of  in- 
spired  men,  as  to  the  events  and  ti'uths  recorded  in 
them. 
The  second  of  these  questions,  When  was  the  canon, 


28     CANON  OF  SCRIPTUKE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

as  a  whole,  completed  ?  is  less  easy  to  answer  ;  and  this, 
in  view  of  the  different  centres  of  religious  life  and  influ- 
ence, the  different  churches  to  which  these  books  were 
first  given  or  sent.  Each  one  of  these  constituted  the 
evidential  centre  to  its  own  special  book.  Its  task 
was  to  communicate  this  book  to  other  neighboring 
churches,  and  through  these  to  reach  tlie  whole 
Church  ;  receiving,  in  turn,  from  any  of  these,  other 
books  of  the  same  character.  To  use  the  idea  of  Bent- 
ley,  any  such  book  was  certified  and  authenticated, 
listed,  canonized  immediately,  in  its  intelligent  recep- 
tion, by  the  church  or  community  to  which  it  was  ad- 
dressed. When  the  Epistle,  for  instance,  to  the  Corin- 
thians or  to  the  Philipi)ians  was  received  by  the  hand 
of  Paul's  messenger,  as  St.  Paul's  writing  or  message, 
and  thus  recognized,  then  and  there  all  questions  as  to 
its  character  and  authority  were  settled.  The  work  of 
such  church,  as  we  have  said,  was  to  let  this  be  known 
to  neighboring  churches  ;  as  when  these  received  a 
similar  epistle  to  communicate  to  them  in  return. 
These  communications  seem  to  have  been  rapid.  The 
presence  of  common  opposition  and  danger,  as  the 
sympathy  of  a  common  faith  and  hoj^e,  and  of  every- 
thing connected  with  it,  would  thus  hasten  this  x)roc- 
ess  of  mutual  communication.  Books  of  a  different 
character,  like  the  Gospels,  not  like  the  epistles,  ad- 
dressed to  a  particular  community,  but  of  interest  to 
all,  would,  from  their  emanating  centres,  extend  to  the 
whole  Christian  community  of  the  empire,  and  even 
beyond.     As  a  matter  of  fact,  and  showing  that  this 


CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT.     29 

must  have  been  the  process,  the  latest  certified  books 
are  those,  not  like  the  epistles  sent  to  Churches,  or  the 
gospels  for  all  the  churches,  but  those  to  individuals, 
like  the  epistles  of  John  or  that  to  Philemon.  The 
Council  of  Laodicea,  360,  and  that  of  Carthage,  397, 
found  the  canon  completed  and  in  full  accei)tance  ; 
they  did  not  settle  it.  That  result  had  already  been 
providentially,  divinely  accomplished,  and  in  a  way 
that  took  it  out  of  the  hands  of  mere  human  agency 
and  authority. 

As  having  its  special  interest  in  this  investigation, 
we  first  look  at  indications  of  the  four  Gospels.  The 
first  specific  mention  of  them  as  a  whole  is  by  Irenseus 
of  Lyons.  He  speaks  of  the  number  four,  of  the  writ- 
ers by  name,  and  of  the  peculiarities  of  their  material. 
Similar  language,  as  to  the  number  of  these  gospels,  is 
used  by  Clement  of  Alexandria  and  by  Tertullian  of 
Carthage.  This  was  during  the  last  half  of  the  second 
century,  and,  in  one  case,  by  a  man  who  had  con- 
versed with  contemporaries  of  the  aj^ostles. 

Earlier  than  this,  however,  is  the  language  of  Justin 
Martyr,  90  a.d.  to  166  a.d.,  as  to  "the  memorials  of 
the  apostles"  read  in  the  churches.  As  Irenseus,  born 
140  A.D.,  was  twenty-six  years  old  at  the  time  of  Jus- 
tin's martyrdom,  the  strong  presumption  is  that  these 
"memorials"  are  the  Gosj^els.  The  interval  is  not 
sufiicient  for  the  disappearance  of  the  one  and  the 
coming  in  of  the  other  of  a  different  character.  The 
memory  of  Irenseus,  it  may  be  said,  went  back  of  the 
time  of  which  Justin  was  writing.     When,  moreover, 


30    CANON  OP  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

we  find  that  Tatian,  a  disciple  of  Justin,  prepared  tlie 
Diatessaron,  or  harmony  of  these  four  Gospels,  the 
presumption  becomes  a  reasonable  certainty.  The 
Didache,  earlier  j)erhaps  than  any  of  these,  uses  mate- 
rials from  the  Gospels,  and  seems  to  know  of  portions 
of  them  ;  of  St.  Matthew  certainly,  and  perhajDS  of  St. 
Luke.  But  it  gives  no  list  or  names  of  books.  It 
would  thus  aj^pear  that  these  Gospels,  as  four,  were 
known  in  the  first  third  of  the  second  century  ;  within 
thirty  years  of  the  death  of  the  Ai30stle  John. 

As  to  the  materials  of  the  New  Testament,  as  it  was 
gathered  into  a  collection,  it  Avould  soon  naturally  be 
listed.  The  wonder  here  is,  the  early  period  in  which 
they  seem  to  have  been  made.  One  of  the  earliest  is 
that  of  the  Mariatorian  canon.  This,  from  allusions 
in  it,  seems  to  have  been  written  about  140  a.d. — 
within  a  generation  of  the  Ax^ostle  John,  and  twenty- 
eight  years  before  the  death  of  Polycarp.  This  con- 
tains all  the  books  of  the  New  Testament  except  He- 
brews, James,  Peter,  and  second  and  third  epistles  of 
John.  It  sx)eaks  of  an  Apocalypse  of  Peter  doubt- 
fully. Following  is  the  catalogue  of  Origen,  185  to 
220  A.D.,  which  includes  all  of  the  present  canon  ex- 
cei3t  James  and  Jude.  These  last  he  quotes  in  other 
parts  of  his  works  as  of  authority.  This  writer,  in  his 
extant  works,  quotes  two  thirds  of  the  material  of  the 
New  Testament,  and  the  whole  contents  of  the  four 
Gospels.  Had  the  New  Testament  been  lost,  "  it 
might  have  been  recovered,"  to  use  the  language  of 
Dr.  Tregelles,  "from  these  books  of  Origen."     With 


CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT.     31 

Eiisebius  is  mention  of  all,  with  his  well-known  divi- 
sion of  spurious,  questioned,  and  accepted  books  ;  the 
two  last  included  in  the  present  canon.  Jerome  has 
the  same  list  as  the  present.  He  speaks,  doubtfully, 
of  Hebrews  ;  but  elsewhere  treats  it  as  canonical. 

Corroborative  of  such  evidence  is  the  fact  of  the 
existence  and  usage  of  fche  Syriac  and  old  Latin  ver- 
sions. The  former  was  probably  made  as  early  as  the 
middle  of  the  second  century,  and  agrees  with  the  pres- 
ent except  second  and  third  John,  Jude,  and  Revelation. 
The  Latin  versions  have  disappeared,  or,  rather,  were 
driven  out  of  circulation  by  the  Vulgate.  The  Diocle- 
tian persecution,  in  its  specific  efi'ort  to  destroy  the 
sacred  books  of  the  Christians,  not  only  proved  such 
lists  to  be  in  existence,  but  led  to  clearer  discrimina- 
tion and  more  decided  effort  on  the  part  of  Christians 
to  preserve  these  books,  and  to  keep  them  apart  from 
all  others  ;  as  does  Eusebius'  threefold  classification 
show  that  they  were  not  received  without  careful  ex- 
amination. The  Apocalypse  as  identified  with  peculiar 
views  of  the  millenninm,  in  certain  localities  was  for 
a  time  suspected  and  doubted  ;  as  were  the  smaller, 
and  individual  epistles,  later  in  finding  circulation  and 
acceptance. 

The  evidence  thus  afforded,  in  specific  lists  of  these 
books,  by  different  writers,  thus  covering  the  first  four 
centuries  of  Christian  history,  has,  in  this  form,  its 
peculiar  value.  But  this  value  is  greatly  increased 
when  we  bear  in  mind  the  manner  in  which  the  authors 
of  these  lists  estimated  and  used  the  books  thus  spoken 


32     CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT. 

of,  and  what  was  tlie  estimate  and  use  by  tlieir  con- 
temporaries. These  lists,  say,  of  Origen,  of  Athana- 
sius,  of  Jerome,  are  the  skeleton.  The  material  of 
these  books,  thus  listed,  as  used  by  these  writers,  is  to 
be  found  upon  every  page  of  their  writings,  and  filling 
volumes  ;  found,  also,  in  all  the  Christian  literature  ot 
their  times  ;  this,  so  to  speak,  gives  the  skeleton,  flesh, 
and  blood,  and  bones,  and  skin,  and  makes  it  a  living 
and  speaking  organism.  Origen,  for  instance,  gives 
us  a  list  of  these  books,  accepted  by  the  Church,  as 
authoritative  Divine  teaching.  But  Origen,  as  we 
have  seen,  quotes  two  thirds  of  the  contents  of  the 
books  in  his  extant  writings  ;  and  in  this,  the  whole 
contents  of  the  four  Gospels  ;  as  in  his  Hexapla  he  re- 
veals his  familiarity  with  the  contents  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament. "There  are,"  says  Lardner,  "perhaps  more 
and  longer  quotations  of  the  small  volume  of  the  New 
Testament  in  the  writings  of  Tertullian  than  of  all  the 
works  of  Cicero,  though  of  so  uncommon  excellence 
for  thought  and  style,  in  the  writing  of  all  characters 
for  several  ages."  So,  too,  as  illustrative  of  the  circu- 
lation of  books  among  the  Christian  communities,  Pro- 
fessor Norton  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  two  hun- 
dred copies  of  Tatian'  s  Diatessaron,  compiled  from  the 
Gospels,  was  found  by  Theodoret  among  the  member- 
ship of  a  single  church,  and  that  their  place  was  easily 
supplied  by  copies  of  the  Gospels  ;  Tatian  himself 
having  adopted  gnostic  views  in  his  writings,  and  be- 
ing considered  as  heretical.  This  pervasion  of  Chris- 
tian literature,  with  the  material  of  the  New  Testa- 


CANON  OF  SCRIPTURE  :  THAT  OF  NEW  TESTAMENT.     33 

ment,  practical  and  controversial,  and  the  position  of 
antliority  which  it  holds,  gives  a  significance  to  these 
lists,  which  immeasurably  increases  their  importance. 

It  is  to  be  further  borne  in  mind  that  the  opportuni- 
ties and  means  of  reproducing  these  books  of  the  New 
Testament,  at  the  time  of  which  we  are  speaking,  were 
much  more  abundant  than  during  some  of  the  centu- 
ries following.  It  is  a  very  common  mistake  to  iden- 
tify the  costliness  and  consequent  scarcity  of  books,  say, 
in  the  tenth  or  twelfth  centuries,  with  the  conditions 
of  the  second  and  the  third.  They  were  very  differ- 
ent. The  cheapness  of  slave  labor,  as  copyists,  and  the 
abundance  of  material  for  production,  made  it  easy  to 
make  books  in  large  numbers  and  at  cheap  rate.  An- 
drews Norton,  in  his  "  Genuineness  of  the  Gospels," 
gives  particulars,  in  regard  to  this  i)oint,  not  only 
showing  the  cheapness  of  production,  but  the  actual 
numbers  of  certain  books  at  one  time  in  circulation. 
His  estimate  is  that,  at  the  close  of  the  second  century, 
witli  a  Christian  population  of  at  least  three  millions, 
there  must  have  been  sixty  thousand  copies  of  the  New 
Testament,  or  one  for  every  fifty,  in  circulation. 
These  facts,  as  bearing  upon  the  general  subject  of 
the  reliability  of  the  evidence  as  to  the  canon,  are  full 
of  significance. 

Tregelles,  on  "  Printed  Text  of  the  New  Testament." 
Andrews  Norton,  on  "  The  Genuineness  of  the  Gospels." 
Salmon's  "  Introduction  to  Books  of  the  New  Testament." 
Charteris,  on  "  New  Testament  Scriptures." 
Harman's  "  Introduction  to  the  Holy  Scriptures,'' 
Westcott  on  "  Canon  of  the  New  Testament." 


CHAPTER  V. 

INSPIRATIOlSr   OF   SCRIPTURE, 

Inspiration  naturally  possible. — Question  for  believers. — New  Testa- 
ment evidence  of  it. — Language  of  the  Master  as  to  His  own  inspira- 
tion ;  as  to  that  of  His  Apostles  and  chosen  witnesses  ;  as  that  of 
Old  Testament. — Claims  of  the  Apostles,  themselves,  as  those  of  Old 
Testament  writers. — Forms  in  which  they  are  made. — Difficulties 
urged,  and  reply. — What  really  implied  in  inspiration. 

The  fact  that  there  is  a  canon,  or  listed  collection  of 
books,  from  which  all  others  are  excluded,  immedi- 
ately suggests  the  inquiry  as  to  the  basis  of  such  col- 
lection. What  is  there  common  in  these  books,  and 
bringing  them  together?  what  is  there  unique  and 
peculiar,  separating  them  from  all  others  ?  We  are 
thus  led  to  that  which  is  their  peculiar  and  differen- 
tiating element — their  inspiration.  The  truths  of  these 
books  may  sometimes  be  found  in  other  books,  and 
wherever  thus  found  are  Divine  ;  whether  in  Chris- 
tian books,  as  those  of  Baxter  or  Leighton,  or  in  books 
outside  of  Christian  literature.  But  the  books  them- 
selves and  their  writers  do  not  come  under  the  term 
inspired.  Books  are  Divine  or  inspired  as  the  writ- 
ings of  men  divinely  fitted  for  giving  them  to  the 
world.  Strictly,  only  persons  are  inspired  ;  the  books 
are  so  called  as  coming  from  such  persons. 


mSPlllATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.  85 

The  two  preliminary  questions  here  are  the  possi- 
bility and  the  fact  of  inspiration.  The  first,  the  pos- 
sibility, presents  no  difficulty.  It  is  as  to  the  Divine 
capacity  of  action.  Is  there  Divine  capacity  of  com- 
munication, whether  in  the  use  of  natural,  ordinary 
agencies,  or  of  those  that  are  extraordinary,  with  that 
which  is  human  ?  Who  can  answer  this  question  in 
the  negative  ?  Can  it  be  thought  a  thing  incredible 
that  God,  the  Creator  of  man's  capacities,  should  be 
able  to  communicate  truth  to  him  in  this  way  ?  The 
question  answers  itself.  If  man  needs  it,  God  can  and 
may  be  expected  to  do  it. 

In  the  line,  moreover,  of  such  anticipation,  as  ra- 
tional, may  be  noted  the  beliefs  and  opinions  on 
this  subject,  not  only  of  Jews  and  Christians,  but  of 
those  outside  of  the  circle  of  the  Old  and  New  Testa- 
ment revelation.  Whether  all  such  ideas  and  claims 
of  inspiration,  outside  of  this  circle,  were  unfounded 
and  false,  cannot  and  need  not  be  asserted.  We  can 
only  say,  that  if  any  of  them  were  genuine  and  accom- 
plished their  divinely  intended  purpose,  the  evidence, 
as  is  that  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament,  has  not 
been  i)reserved.  The  fact  of  prevalent  ideas  and 
beliefs  has,  however,  its  significance.  The  unbelieving 
inference  has  been,  all  these  were  counterfeits  ;  so, 
therefore,  those  of  Judaism  and  Christianity.  The 
believing  inference  is  just  the  opposite.  It  is  not  cer- 
tain that  all  these  were  counterfeits.  But,  if  so,  coun- 
terfeits always  imply  a  genuine,  somewhere  or  some- 
how.    That  men  should,  in  so  many  forms,  anticipate 


36  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

and  naturally  believe  in  this  fact,  imi^lies  the  coiiela- 
tion  of  this  fact  not  only  to  the  convictions,  but  to  the 
moral  and  spiritual  necessities  of  human  nature. 

This  matter,  however,  is  one  more  particularly  for 
Christian  believers,  those  who  accept  the  evidence,  his- 
torical, moral,  and  otherwise,  of  the  truth  and  genu- 
ineness of  the  Christian  record.  The  apostles,  for  in- 
stance, were  first  heard  by  the  unbelieving  Jews  and 
Gentiles  as  uninspired  men  ;  uninspired  witnesses  of 
certain  events  and  transactions  coming  under  their 
cognizance.  After  the  conversion  of  these  unbelievers 
they  listened  to  the  same  apostles,  as  inspired  wit- 
nesses, of  these  same  facts,  as  also  to  their  real  mean- 
ing. It  is  a  waste  of  time  to  argue  the  question  or 
urge  the  authority  of  inspiration  with  a  man  who 
questions  the  historic  credibility  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment. Prior  to  inspiration  is  this  previous  question  of 
the  genuineness,  authenticity,  and  credibility  of  the 
books  claimed  to  be  inspired. 

So  again,  the  distinction,  more  emphasized  in  late 
discussions,  and  helping  to  remove  some  of  the  diffi- 
culties of  the  subject,  of  revelation  from  inspiration, 
needs  to  be  kept  in  mind.  In  many  cases  they  went 
together  ;  but  in  others  they  were  separated,  and  in 
all  need  to  be  distinguished.  There  was,  for  instance, 
revelation  to  the  whole  camp  of  Israel  at  Sinai,  of  the 
majesty  and  will  of  Jehovah.  There  was  inspiration 
to  Moses  to  write  the  ten  words  and  what  followed  for 
permanent  remembrance.  So,  too,  many  of  the  earlier 
manifestations  to  jiatriarchs,  as  also  of  a  later  period, 


INSPIRATION  OF   SCRIPTURE.  37 

may  not  have  included  the  insjnring  influence.  There 
were  revelations  to  Balaam  ;  and,  at  one  supreme  mo- 
ment, there  was  an  inspiration,  driving  him  against  his 
wish  to  proclaim  the  success  of  Israel.  Our  effort  now 
is  to  find  out  as  to  this  latter  inspiration. 

Deferring  anything  like  a  definition,  until  we  have 
examined  the  phenomena,  we  begin  with  the  New  Tes- 
tament. Our  point  of  departure,  as  our  ultimate  au- 
thority, is  the  person  and  teaching  of  our  blessed 
Lord.  This  teaching  has  reference  to  three  spheres  of 
inspiration  :  first,  that  of  His  own  teaching  ;  second- 
ly, that  of  His  a]30stles  and  accredited  witnesses  ; 
third,  that  of  Old  Testament  writers.  We  begin  with 
the  first :  His  claim  to  speak  with  Divine  authority. 

"As  the  Father  gave  Me  charge,  so  I  speak." 
' '  The  words  that  I  speak  unto  you,  they  are  spirit 
and  they  are  life."  "  He  that  sent  Me  is  true  ;  and  I 
speak  to  the  world  those  things  which  I  have  heard  of 
Him."  "  As  the  Father  hath  taught  Me,  so  1  speak." 
' '  Whosoever  f olloweth  Me  shall  not  abide  in  darkness, 
but  have  the  light  of  life."  "  Even  as  the  Father  said 
unto  Me,  so  I  speak.' '  There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the 
meaning  of  these  and  similar  declarations. 

And  as  our  Lord  thus  affirms  the  Divine  authority 
of  His  own  declarations,  so  does  He  give  assurance  of 
a  Divine  influence  which  would  impart  like  authority 
to  those  of  His  apostles.  Their  work  was  to  testify  of 
Him,  In  that  testimony,  of  course,  there  would  be 
constant  recurrence  to  acts  and  words  of  His,  coming 
under  their  own  observation,  and  in  their  own  hearing. 


38  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

Natural  memory  would  be  used  in  tlie  report ;  but 
there  would  be  also  a  Divine  influence,  aiding  tliat 
memory,  recalling  all  things  as  they  had  taken  place. 
So,  too,  as  to  other  things  ;  their  understanding  of  His 
character  and  work.  But  with  this,  also,  a  Divine  in- 
fluence, "taking  these  things  of  Him,"  and  revealing 
them  in  their  full  significance.  As  witnesses  of  Him, 
in  this  work  of  their  apostleshij) — not  in  other  matters 
or  undertakings — but  in  this,  their  appointed  work, 
the  Paraclete,  the  Sj)irit  of  wisdom  and  of  knowledge, 
would  be  with  them,  and  in  them,  and  give  truth  and 
authority  to  all  their  teachings  and  declarations. 

Among  these  assurances,  the  first  in  jioint  of  time 
was  in  connection  with  the  sending  forth  of  the  twelve 
(Matt.  10  :  19,  20).  "  It  is  not  ye  that  speak,"  is  His 
language  in  contemplation  of  a  certain  exigency,  ' '  but 
the  Spirit  of  your  Father,  that  speaketh  in  you." 
Again  in  Luke  12  :  11,  in  telling  them  of  dangers  to  be 
encountered  in  His  service,  the  same  assurance  is 
given :  "  Take  no  thought,  be  not  anxious,"  as  to 
the  manner  or  the  matter,  nwi  rf  n,  "how  or  what 
ye  shall  speak."  "The  Holy  Ghost  shall  teach  you 
in  the  same  hour  what  ye  ought  to  speak."  So, 
again,  later  in  His  prediction  of  the  destruction  of 
Jerusalem,  and  of  difficulties  and  persecutions  con- 
nected with  their  work  in  preaching  the  Gospel  (Mark 
13  :  11 ;  Luke  21  :  14),  the  same  assurance  is  given, 
with  the  additional  promise,  "  I  will  give  you  a  mouth, 
and  wisdom  which  all  your  adversaries  shall  not  be 
able  to  gainsay  nor  to  resist. " 


INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.  39 

Throwing  light  upon  all  these,  and  exx3anding  their 
meaning,  is  His  declaration  at  the  last  supper,  of  the 
Paraclete  going  with  them,  and  recalling  all  things  to 
their  remembrance,  revealing  His  person  and  work, 
leading  them  into  the  whole  truth,  and  showing  them 
things  to  come.  All  these,  closing  in  the  promise 
given  just  before  the  ascension  (Acts  1  :  1-8),  when 
they  are  reminded  of  "  the  promise  of  the  Father," 
already  given,  and  receive  their  last  assurance  of  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  as  they  witnessed  for  Him 
"  in  Jerusalem,  and  in  Samaria,  and  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth."  Manifestly  there  is,  in  these  declarations,  the 
authoritative  word  of  the  Master  to  the  affirmed  in- 
spiration of  these.  His  chosen  witnesses.  And,  as  with 
these,  as  we  saw  in  the  discussion  on  the  canon,  so 
with  others  called  to  their  special  work — to  Paul,  to 
Barnabas,  admitted  to  the  apostolate  ;  to  Agabus  or 
ApoUos  ;  to  Luke  or  Mark,  receiving  the  j)rophetic 
gift,  speaking  under  the  power  of  the  same  Divine 
Spirit  and  with  the  same  Divine  authority. 

And  as  our  Lord  thus  gave  assurance  of  this  in- 
spiration to  the  apostles,  so  these  ai:)Ostles  themselves 
distinctly  claim  it.  "  The  word  of  God,  which  ye 
have  heard  of  us"  (1  Thess.  11  :  13),  is  one  of  these  decla- 
rations. "  What  I  write  unto  you  are  the  command- 
ments of  the  Lord"  (1  Cor.  14  :  37)  is  another.  "  I  re- 
ceived the  Gospel  by  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ ;  not 
from  man,  nor  by  man,  but  through  Jesus  Christ  from 
God"  (Gal.  1  :  12).  "  We  are  of  God.  He  that  heareth 
God,  heareth  us"  (1  John  4  :  6).     So,  too,  as  to  forms 


40  INSPIRATION   OF   SCRIPTURE. 

and  modes  of  expression,  in  which  it  is  implied.  "  It 
seemed  good  to  the  Holy  Ghost  and  to  us"  (Acts 
15  :  28).  "  The  Spirit  speaketh  expressly"  (1  Tim. 
4:1).  "We  speak  in  the  words  which  the  Holy 
Ghost  teacheth"  (1  Cor.  2:4,  7,  10,  12,  13).  "We 
have  the  Spirit"  (Eph.  3:5).  "I  was  in  the  Spirit" 
(Rev.  1  :  10  ;  4:2).  Evidently  the  claim  is  here  assert- 
ed of  the  actual  possession,  of  the  power  promised  to 
them  by  the  Master. 

But  question  has  here  arisen  as  to  the  adjustment  of 
these  assurances  and  claims  with  certain  recorded  facts 
of  apostolic  experience.  One  of  these  is  the  conference 
of  the  fifteenth  chapter,  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles, 
and  the  conclusion  as  the  result  of  that  conference. 
Another  is  the  inability  of  Peter  fully  to  see  the  mean- 
ing of  his  vision  until  after  his  conversation  with  Cor- 
nelius. Another  is  the  contention  of  Paul  and  Barna- 
bas as  to  the  propriety  of  giving  Mark  a  second  trial. 
And  the  last  is  the  inability  of  Peter  to  see  his  incon- 
sistency of  action  until  his  attention  was  called  to  it  by 
the  rebuke  of  Paul. 

To  these  difficulties  the  general  reply  may  be  made  : 
inspiration  is  not  omniscience.  It  is  insight  given 
with  reference  to  a  joarticular  object,  and  in  a  variety 
of  ways.  Still  further,  if  these  cases  constituted  in- 
consistency, the  disci x)les  and  the  writer  of  the  book 
do  not  seem  to  recognize  it.  The  process  by  which  an 
insx^ired  man  was  brought  to  a  conclusion,  of  which  he 
could  be  divinely  assured,  was,  in  different  cases,  a 
very  different  one.     Peter  needed  to  be  led  and  in- 


INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.  41 

striicted  in  a  x)eculiar  manner  before  lie  could  clearly 
see  the  fact  of  the  full  extension  of  the  Gospel  to  the 
Gentiles.  He  needed,  again,  by  the  rebuke  of  Paul, 
to  see  that  he  was  acting  inconsistently  with  this 
truth,  which  he  had  previously  reached  in  the  house  of 
Cornelius.  The  same  Divine  process  of  imparting  light 
to  an  insijired  conclusion  was  afforded  in  the  discus- 
sions of  the  Apostolic  Council.  The  contention  of 
Paul  and  Barnabas  was  not  as  to  their  teaching,  but 
as  to  the  merits  of  an  individual.  Most  readers  think 
Paul  was  right ;  but  Mark's  subsequent  experience 
seems  to  justify  the  view  of  Barnabas.  But  whichever 
was  right,  it  was  not  a  matter  of  inspiration. 

So  far,  then,  as  regards  the  insi^iration  of  the  Master 
Himself,  and  that  of  the  apostles  in  this,  His  own  lan- 
guage, and  in  theirs  reaffirming,  we  find  it  clearly  and 
emphatically  asserted.  As  applicable  to  their  teach- 
ing orally  given,  it  is  equally  so  to  that  teaching  in 
written  form.  As  the  wisdom  of  man  has  made  mani- 
fest that  this  is  the  best  form  in  which  to  place  truth 
and  corrrectly  perpetuate  it,  the  wisdom  of  God  would 
not  select  one  that  is  inferior. 

We  are  thus  led  to  the  kindred  question  of  tlie  in- 
spiration of  the  Old  Testament.  Here  we  have  not 
only  the  affirmations  of  the  Master  and  of  the  apostles, 
but  of  the  Old  Testament  writers  themselves.  We 
begin  with  the  first.  Prior  to  specific  examination  of 
this  there  are  two  general  presumptions  to  be  noted  as 
of  special  significance.  One  of  these  is  the  ordinary 
pourse  of  our  Lord,  and  of  the  apostles,  as  to  Judaism 


42  INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE. 

and  Jevvisli  Scriptures.  While  their  real  work  was  to 
subvert  Judaism,  especially  in  its  rabbinic  form,  their 
language  and  course  upheld  and  honored  the  Jewish 
Scriptures  ;  they  even  affirm  that  in  these  Scriptures  is 
a  Divine  sanction  to  their  work.  No  less  important, 
as  in  the  same  line  of  inference,  is  the  usage  and  pecul- 
iar idea  of  the  word  i3roj)het— not  merely  a  predicter, 
but  one  speaking  under  Divine  enlightenment  and 
direction  ;  organs  of  Divine  communication,  under  Di- 
vine guidance,  and  proclaiming,  "  Thus  saith  Jeho- 
vah." This  term,  used  both  in  the  Old  and  New  Tes- 
taments, carries  with  it  this  implication.  Taking  with 
us  these  presumptions,  we  look  at  some  of  the  declara- 
tions of  these  different  witnesses  in  regard  to  this  sub- 
ject. 

We  begin  with  those  of  our  Lord.  "  David  spake 
by  the  Holy  Ghost."  "  God's  word  cannot  be  broken." 
"The  Scriptures  testify  of  Me."  "The  Scriptures 
must  be  fulfilled."  "All  things  must  be  fulfilled 
which  were  written  in  the  law  of  Moses,  and  in  the 
prophets,  and  in  the  Psalms  concerning  Me."  "  Be- 
ginning at  Moses  and  all  the  prophets.  He  expounded 
unto  them,  in  all  the  Scriptures,  the  things  concerning 
Himself."  These  are  a  few  out  of  many  ;  but  they 
are  sufficient.  It  is  to  be  said  that  in  His  appeals  to 
Old  Testament  Scripture  it  was  as  ultimate,  as  Divine 
in  its  authority.* 

*  The  point  has  been  recently  made,  especially  in  connection  with  the 
declarations  of  our  Lord  in  regard  to  particulars  of  the  Old  Testament, 
as  to  whether  such  declaration  is,  in  all  cases,  to  be  regarded  as  final. 


mSPlKATlON   OF   SCRlPTUliE.  43 

The  same  is  to  be  said  as  to  the  apostles.  Their 
preaching  was  to  show,  from  the  Okl  Testament,  as 
divinely  predicting,  that  Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  and 

The  doubt  in  this  case  is  urged  upon  two  grounds  :  First,  upon  that  of 
the  limitations  of  our  Lord's  knowledge,  in  the  very  fact  of  His  human- 
ity. Secondly,  supposing  His  knowledge  perfect,  as  extending  to  His 
actual  declarations,  His  object  was,  not  to  settle  questions  of  criticism 
and  history,  but  to  reveal  Himself  and  His  work  ;  in  so  doing  to  em- 
ploy the  terms  then  in  use,  and  adapt  Himself  to  the  intelligence  of  His 
hearers.     We  examine  the  first. 

Jesus  Himself,  it  is  urged,  speaks  of  things  which  He  did  not  know  •. 
"increased  in  wisdom  and  stature;"  was  "surprised"  at  things  as 
they  sometimes  took  place.  If  limited,  it  is  asked,  in  the  conditions  of 
His  humanity  in  these  respects,  why  not  in  others  ?  Why  not  as  to  the 
authorship  and  time  of  the  composition  of  a  Psalm,  or  as  to  that  of 
certain  portions  of  the  Pentateuch  ?  Why  not  regard  Him  in  this,  His 
human  knowledge,  as  in  common  with  that  of  His  age  and  time  ?  To 
this  the  reply  is  direct  and  decisive.  While  our  Lord  knew  the  limita- 
tions within  which  He  was  not  to  speak,  He  knew  also  His  knowledge 
as  to  those  things  of  which  He  ought  and  did  speak.  It  would  almost 
seem  as  if  some  of  His  declarations  were  anticipative  of  such  question. 
"  What  we  know  we  speak  ;  what  we  have  seen  we  testify."  "  I  speak 
as  My  Father  hath  taught  Me."  "What  I  should  say  and  what  I 
should  speak  the  Father  gave  Me  commandment."  "As  I  hear,  I 
judge  ;  and  the  word  that  ye  hear  is  not  Mine,  but  the  Father's,  which 
sent  Me."  In  the  light  of  these  declarations,  it  may  be  said  that  He 
knew  His  own  human  limitations  ;  and  knowingly,  from  the  Spirit  which 
dwelt  in  Him  without  measure,  spoke  and  taught  authoritatively  within 
those  limitations.  The  highest  form  of  mere  uninspired  knowledge  is 
this,  which  includes  its  own  limitations  and  keeps  its  utterances  within 
them.  Was  that  of  Him,  who,  perfect  humanity  in  union  with  Deity, 
and  even  in  that  humanity  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Spirit  of 
knowledge  and  wisdom,  less  ?  What  He  positively  said  He  knew  ;  and 
He  always  thus  unhesitatingly  spoke,  as  knowing  that  He  knew. 

But,  then,  as  to  the  second,  it  is  further  asked,  supposing  this  perfect 


44  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

that  this  Messiah  was  the  predicted  head,  not  of  an 
earthly,  but  of  a  heavenly  and  spiritual  kingdom. 
From  Peters  lirst  sermon  to  his  JeAvish  countrymen, 

knowledge  iu  Himself,  as  to  all  His  afflnnutious,  did  lie  in  such  affirma- 
tion endorse,  or  intend  to  endorse,  all  the  meanings  of  the  terms  em- 
ployed, and  in  the  sense  in  which  He  knew  Himself  to  be  under- 
stood ?  This  is  a  different  question,  and  demands  careful  consideration. 
Words,  it  is  to  be  recognized,  have  an  etymological,  and  they  may  have 
a  later  contemporaneous  and  popular  meaning.  No  one  who  now 
speaks  of  a  man  as  a  lunatic  means  to  say  that  the  moon  made  him  so. 
So,  again,  to  say  that  a  man  is  a  villain,  does  not  hold  us  to  the  asser- 
tion that  he  lives,  or  ever  lived,  in  a  village.  "We  speak  of  the  sun 
rising  and  setting  without  becoming  responsible  for  the  Ptolemaic 
theory.  So  in  numberless  other  cases.  The  speaker,  in  anj'  such  case, 
is  held  to  the  sense  in  which  he  knows  that  he  is  understood.  Our 
blessed  Lord  and  the  inspired  writers,  to  be  intelligible,  must  employ 
the  terms  and  forms  of  expression  in  usage  among  their  hearers.  The 
same  thing  may  be  said  as  to  historical  allusion,  or  to  known  characters 
even  in  well-known  works  of  fiction.  Supposing  the  Book  of  Jonah,  or 
that  of  Ruth,  to  have  been  a  fiction,  and  accepted  as  such  by  hearers  and 
speakers  ;  illustrations  from  them,  in  our  Lord's  teaching,  might  have 
been  anticipated. 

But  supposing  any  such  fiction,  known  as  such  by  a  speaker,  but  re- 
garded by  his  hearer  as  a  genuine  history,  be  used  by  that  speaker  in  argu- 
ment or  teaching,  as  historical  truth,  and  thus  to  the  establishing  of  his 
conclusions.  This  would  not  be  argumentum  ad  liominem,  as  it  is  some- 
times represented,  but  argumentum  ad  igiiorantiam — taking  advantage 
of  ignorance  to  reach  a  conclusion  which  the  material  did  not  really  sus- 
tain. A  speaker,  under  the  law  of  contract,  is  held  to  the  sense  in 
which  he  knows  himself  to  be  understood  by  his  hearer.  He  is  so 
morally  as  well  as  legally.  The  significance  of  this  principle  must  be 
recognized,  as  we  look  at  these,  our  Lord's  declarations.  ]\Iuch  more, 
too,  when,  upon  this  accepted  sense,  depends  the  validity  of  His  con- 
clusion. Those  Old  Testament  books  were  regarded  as  sacred  truth  ; 
their  sacreduess  associated  with  their  authorship.     Upon  this  basis  the 


INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE.  45 

to  Paul's  last  appeal  to  them  at  Eome,  this  was  the  in- 
variable course  i^nrsued.  No  effort  or  specific  affirma- 
tion is  made  as  to  the  Divine  source  or  authority  of 
the  Old  Testament.  It  was  always  assumed  and  im- 
plied, on  one  side,  always  accepted  as  beyond  doubt 
by  the  other.  Such  specific  affirmations  are  afterward 
made  in  later  Christian  instruction.  But,  with  Jewish 
hearers,  it  was  not  needed,  would  have  been  a  gratui- 
tous impertinence. 

Among  these  latter  are  those  of  2  Tim.  3  :  15,  16  ; 
1  Pet.  1 :  10, 11,  12  ;  2  Pet.  1  :  19,  20,  21.  The  different 
readings  of  the  first,  ''all  Scripture  is  insx)ired,"  and 
"  every  insiDired  Scripture,"  does  not  affect  the  issue  as 
to  the  Divine  origin  of  the  Old  Testament ;  and  the  two 
others  aflBrm  its  i)i"ophetic  character  and  fulfilment  in 
the  events  of  the  New  Testament. 

conclusion  rests.  When  He  said,  "Moses  wrote  of  Me,"  and  "David 
said"  thus  and  so  of  Me,  in  certain  Old  Testament  books.  He  was 
speaking  to  those  who  accepted  such  origin  and  authorship.  In  that 
acceptation  His  argument  found  its  conclusiveness.  Suppose,  for  in- 
stance, He  had  said,  "  Some  unknown  writer  or  redactor  of  the  time  of 
Josiah,  in  a  book  which  you  think  was  written  by  Moses,  wrote  of 
Me."  What  would  have  been  the  reply  ?  Or,  again,  some  unknown 
psalmist  of  the  Maccabean  times  said  in  a  psalm  which  you  think  was 
written  by  David,  "  the  Lord  said"  thus  and  so  of  ^e.  Supposing 
these  hearers  to  have  kept  themselves  from  stoning  Him  on  the  spot, 
what  would  have  been  the  natural  reply  to  such  an  argument  ?  Would 
it  not  have  been, ' '  What  do  we  care  for  unknown  writers  of  the  Josian  or 
the  Maccabean  age  ?  If  Moses  wrote  and  David  spoke,  as  we  believe 
they  did,  we  are  ready  to  hear  them. "  Manifestly  the  common  postulate 
with  speaker  and  hearer,  in  an  argument,  is  needed  to  give  such  argu- 
ment its  validity.  Popular  apprehensions  cannot  be  used  to  establish 
truths,  unless  themselves  truthful. 


46  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPT UKE. 

But  how  as  to  these  Old  Testament  writers  them- 
selves ?  Bo  they  claim  to  speak  under  Divine  guid- 
ance and  influence  'i  The  reply  is  best  given  in  their 
own  language. 

"  Jehovah  said  to  me,  Go  and  speak  to  this  people" 
(Isa.  6  :  9).  "  Thus  saith  Jehovah"  (Isa.  43  :  1).  "  The 
hand  of  Jehovah  was  upon  me,"  "  The  Avord  of  Jeho- 
vah came  to  me."  "  The  heavens  were  oj)ened,  and  I 
saw  visions  of  God"  (Ezek.  1  : 1-3).  "  The  word  of 
the  Lord  came  unto  me,  saying"  (Ezek.  6  :  1).  So  also 
Jer.  23  :  9  ;  2  :  12  ;  7  :  23  ;  Amos  3:1;  7  :  1  ;  9  :  1-3. 
These  are  but  a  few  out  of  many.  As  in  the  language 
of  our  Lord,  and  that  of  the  apostles,  there  can  be  no 
difficulty  or  doubt  as  to  the  fact  meant  to  be  asserted 
— that  of  Divine  influence  and  guidance.  These  decla- 
rations, taken  in  connection  with  those  of  the  New 
Testament,  show,  further,  this  influence  and  guidance 
as  not  only  extending  to  prediction  and  to  moral  pre- 
cept, but  to  other  portions  of  Old  Testament  material. 
They  are  all  spoken  of  alike  in  the  New  Testament. 
John  10  :  35,  "  Scripture  cannot  be  broken."  Facts 
and  doctrines  are  treated  as  inseparable  ;  the  precept 
or  doctrine  is  in  the  fact,  in  ritual  as  in  moral  action, 
Heb.  9:18,  "The  Holy  Ghost  signifying,"  through 
these,  certain  Divine  realities.  So,  too,  with  actions 
and  sentiments  of  good  men,  of  an  improper  as  of  a 
proper  character.  We  have  the  record  of  David's 
weakness  and  sin,  of  Solomon's  idolatry,  of  Job's  impa- 
tience, of  the  erroneous  arguments  of  his  friends,  of 
the  complaints  of  Jeremiah,  of  the  weakness  of  Heze- 


INSPIRATION   OF  SORIPTURE.  47 

kiali.  The  record  in  all  these  particulars  has  its  di- 
vinely intended  uses — is  for  the  instruction  of  all,  of 
all  coming  generations. 

Such,  then,  as  to  the  fact  of  insjDiration,  both  of  the 
Old  and  of  the  New  Testament.  We  approach,  now, 
the  more  disputed  point  of  its  character  ;  what  it  im- 
plies ;  what  in  it  is  essential ;  what  some  of  its  inci- 
dentals ?  Is  there  any  one  word  under  which  its  char- 
acter can  be  described  ;  which  gives  what  may  be 
called  a  theory  of  inspiration  ?  It  is  a  Divine,  and  yet 
a  human  result ;  under  a  Divne  Agent,  and  yet  in  con- 
nection with  human  personality.  Each  of  these  fac- 
tors. Divine  and  human,  act ;  and  in  such  manner  that 
the  integrity  of  each  is  unimpaired.  Not  only  the 
human  personality,  but  the  peculiar  individualities  of 
this  personality,  as  manifest  in  the  contents  of  the  in- 
sjDired  books,  find  their  place.  As  one  of  these  per- 
sonalities— the  Divine — is  infinite,  and  is  thus,  to  some 
degree,  incomprehensible  in  His  operations,  so  any 
theory  of  these  operations  must  be  imperfect.  We 
may  examine  some  of  the  forms  in  which  it  has  been 
affirmed. 

One  of  these  is  what  has  been  called  the  mechanical 
— that  which  eliminates  the  human  personality,  and 
makes  the  inspired  man  a  mere  machine  in  the  hand 
of  the  Omnipotent  Insi)ii'er.  Whether  ever  consistent- 
ly held,  it  has  now  few,  if  any,  advocates.  Its  main  im- 
portance just  now  is,  that  those  who  attempt  the  op- 
posite extreme — that  of  eliminating,  not  the  human, 
but  the  Divine  Agent,  in  the  fact  of  inspiration,  and 


48  INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE. 

to  make  it  out  purely  a  natural  one— usually  begin  by 
representing  their  opponents,  and  of  whatever  class, 
as  holding  this,  the  "  old  traditional  view''  and  ex- 
planation.    It  is  sufficient  to  have  described  it. 

This  last,  the  natural,  and  as  the  greatest  extreme 
from  tlie  mechanical,  may  briefly  be  described.  This 
is  inspiration  of  the  whole  man,  in  his  highest  physi- 
cal, mental,  and  moral  condition,  as  he  is  brought  in 
contact  with  great  truths  and  sentiments,  comes  under 
their  power,  and  gives  to  them  expression — that  of  the 
orator  or  poet  in  his  best  moments  of  natural  inspira- 
tion. This,  the  rational  and  moral  elevation  of  the 
human  agent,  was  that  of  the  Hebrew  prophet,  of  the 
Christian  apostle.  If  it  be  urged  that  this  is  spoken  of 
as  Divine,  the  reply  is,  "  All  that  man  has  is  divinely 
given,  his  natural  powers,  as  his  outward  surround- 
ings." As  the  inspiration,  through  the  elevation  of 
these  natural  powers,  exercised  and  quickened  under 
these  divinely  arranged  outward  conditions,  it  is  prop- 
erly described  as  Divine.  It  is  thus  a  Divine  gift,  and 
power  for  all  time,  to  be  anticijiated  in  every  age  of 
the  world.  In  other  words,  it  is  naturally  supernatu- 
ral, if  this  last  word  ought  ever  to  be  used. 

But  to  this  there  are  two  fatal  difficulties.  It  does 
not  corres^iond  with  the  facts  ;  and  it  really  gets  rid 
of  what  it  attempts  to  explain.  An  inspiration,  with- 
out an  extraordinary  Divine  influence  upon  the  in- 
spired man,  is  in  conflict  with  the  whole  tenor  of 
Scripture  teaching,  already  quoted.  This  fact  of  Bible 
insi:)iration  cannot  be  brought  within  the  category  of 


INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE.  49 

mere  natural  agencies  ;  and  this  explanation  does  vio- 
lence to  the  terms  in  which  it  is  described.  The  in- 
spired man  may  have  been,  in  the  elevation  of  his 
highest  and  best  rational  and  moral  moments.  The 
outward  environment  may  have  been  of  the  most  sug- 
gestive and  favorable  character.  But  there  was  some- 
thing else,  producing,  it  may  be,  this  very  elevation, 
and  using  these  outward  circumstances,  distinct  from, 
however,  and  above  them — the  personal  Divine  Spirit 
of  Divine  truth  and  wisdom. 

Akin  to  this,  and  with  like  defect,  to  some  degree, 
is  that  which  has  been  called  gracious  inspiration. 
This,  while  recognizing  the  personal  action  of  the 
Spirit  of  God  upon  the  spirit  of  man,  at  the  same  time 
identifies  it  with  the  ordinary  enlightening  and  sanc- 
tifying influence  of  *the  blessed  Spirit  upon  the  minds 
and  hearts  of  believers.  His  agency  to  the  revelation 
and  certification  of  new  truth,  upon  the  specially  select- 
ed prophet  or  apostle,  is  thus  only  the  same  as  that  of 
His  enlightening  and  sanctifying  agency  in  the  spir- 
itual life.  The  holiest  man  is  the  most  fully  inspired 
prophet,  and  all  holy  men  are  inspired. 

These  two  things,  doubtless,  may,  and,  perhaps,  ordi- 
narily, did  go  together.  They  did  so,  perhaps,  with 
Elijah  and  Paul ;  but  how  with  Jonah  or  Balaam  or 
Caiaphas  ?  Ordinarily,  it  would  seem  that  holy  men 
were  selected  for  such  work.  But  not  necessarily.  A 
man  of  ordinary  spiritual  attainment  might  thus  be  se- 
lected, and  another  of  higher  spiritual  character,  but  of 
inferior  natural  gifts,  be  left  aside.     The  case  of  Jonah 


50  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

is  almost  as  suggestive  as  that  of  Balaam  or  of  Caiaphas. 
But  whatever  such  capacity,  natural,  moral,  or  spir- 
itual, there  was  something  else.  An  inspired  prophet 
is  not,  necessarily,  although  ordinarily,  a  man  of  the 
highest  spiritual  character  and  attainment.  On  the 
other  hand,  a  holy  man  is  not,  thereby,  an  inspired 
prophet.  The  two  things,  if  not  always  separated, 
must  always  be  distinguished.  This  view,  like  the  one 
jireceding,  gets  rid  of  the  idea  of  authoritative  inspira- 
tion. 

Somewhat  different  from  either  of  these  is  what  has 
been  called  partial  inspiration  ;  partial,  sometimes  as 
to  the  different  books,  sometimes  as  to  the  material  of 
the  same  book  ;  involving  thus  the  idea  of  different 
degrees  of  inspiration.  The  law,  it  may  be,  and  the 
prophets,  with  some  ;  but  not  tiie  historical  books. 
With  others,  it  is  the  material  of  prediction,  and  pre- 
cept, and  sj)ecific  declaration,  but  not  that,  as  in  Paul's 
epistles,  of  reasoning  ;  or,  as  in  the  Gospels,  of  narra- 
tive. 

The  element  of  truth,  in  this  view,  is  that  of  the 
variety  of  the  Divine  operation,  in  its  modes  and  mani- 
festations. It  is  here,  as  it  is  in  all  Divine  operations, 
manifoldness  in  unity.  The  unity,  here,  is  the  one 
authoritative,  inspiring  Divine  Agent  and  agency.  In 
this,  its  Divine  identity,  it  baffles  all  finite  qualifica- 
tion or  quantification.  The  inspired  writers  them- 
selves make  no  such  effort.  The  Scriptures,  as  we 
have  seen,  in  the  language  of  our  Lord,  are  spoken  of 
as  a  whole,  and  are  spoken  of  as  alike  authoritative. 


INSPIRATION  OP  SCRIPTURE.  51 

Sometimes  it  is  so  under  the  word  "  Scripture  ;"  some- 
times where  their  threefold  division  is  indicated.  The 
idea  of  inspiration,  moreover,  as  related  to  historical 
record,  or  to  processes  of  reasoning,  presents  no 
rational  difficulty.  Men  exercise  upon  each  other 
similar  influences,  aiding  their  memory  of  facts,  and 
their  jDrocesses  of  reasoning,  without  any  interference 
either  with  rational  or  moral  i3ersonality.  If  so  with 
the  i^ower  of  the  spirit  of  man,  much  more  so  with  the 
Spirit  of  God.  The  inspired  writers  are  the  only  capa- 
ble witnf^sses  in  this  matter.  Their  testimony  recog- 
nizes no  such  distinction  ;  rather  implies  and  affirms 
the  contrary. 

But,  if  thus  extended  to  the  whole  of  Scripture,  in 
what  sense  ?  Is  it  to  the  words  ?  And,  if  so,  was  it 
verbally  dictated  ?  These  two  ideas  are  distinct.  We 
take  the  latter  first — that  of  verbal  dictation,  or,  as  it 
is  usually  described,  verbal  inspiration. 

That  there  were  instances  in  which  such  verbal  dic- 
tation found  place  can  scarcely  be  doubted.  The  lan- 
guage, for  instance,  of  direction,  to  Isa.  6  : 9,  10  ;  Jer. 
22  :  2,  3  ;  Ezek.  3  :  10  ;  Jer.  1  :  9,  10  ;  Amos  2  :  1-10, 
seems  to  imply  this  ;  as  is  the  case  with  many  similar 
passages.  If  it  be  said  that,  in  these  cases,  the  truth 
was  revealed,  and  the  words  are  those  of  the  prophet, 
the  reply  is  that  the  account  specifies  words  as  com- 
municated ;  and  the  most  natural  interpretation  is  that 
of  verbal  messages,  with  which  the  prophet  was  charged. 
Inspiration,  therefore,  in  some  cases,  extended  to  the 
verbal  form  of  the  message.     This,  let  us  remember, 


52  INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE. 

did  not  conflict  either  with  the  free  agency  or  indi- 
viduality of  the  inspired  man,  or  of  those  to  whom  he 
spoke.  A  wise  human  sender  of  a  verbal  message 
would,  in  doing  it,  so  adapt  his  message  to  the  indi- 
vidualities, both  of  the  messenger  and  the  recipient,  as 
to  express  his  meaning  in  the  best  manner  possible. 
If  this  be  possible,  and  the  best  course  to  human  wis- 
dom, it  would  not  be  less  so  to  that  which  is  Divine. 
The  style  of  that  Spirit  of  x^erfect  wisdom  and  knowl- 
edge is  a  j)erfect  one  ;  not  absolutely,  or  metaphysi- 
cally, or  rhetorically,  but  relatively — relatively  to  its 
recipients,  and  to  the  purpose  to  be  accomplished. 

But  while  there  were  thus  undoubted  examples  of 
verbal  insi)iration,  it  cannot,  therefore,  be  affirmed  that 
thus  it  was  with  all  There  are  other  recorded  cases 
in  which  nothing  of  this  kind  is  im2:)lied.  "  The  hand," 
the  power  of  Jehovah,  is  upon  the  prophet,  and  he 
speaks.  The  prophet  sees  a  vision,  and  it  becomes  the 
starting- j)oint  of  his  prediction.  Sometimes  such  vis- 
ion is  explained.  Then,  again,  no  such  explanation 
is  given.  In  other  cases  incidents  are  the  occasion,  as 
2  Sam.  22  ;  2  Kings  19  :  20-34  ;  1  Kings  17  :  1-14  ; 
21  :  17,  24  ;  Obad.  1:1.  Then  again  the  imx)ulse  comes 
without  anything  outward  (Acts  8  :  26  ;  10  :  19).  "  The 
word  of  the  Lord  came,"  is  one  form  of  expression 
employed.  "The  burden  of  the  word  of  the  Lord" 
is  another.  The  connection,  in  these  cases,  rather 
seems  to  indicate  the  source  and  substance  of  the 
message  than  its  verbal  expression.  Doubtless,  in 
these  cases,  the  influence  exerted  would  modify  and 


INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE.  53 

control  the  terms,  the  words  of  the  message  thus  de- 
livered. So,  we  may  say,  in  that  degree  and  respect 
it  was  verbal.  Whether  in  rare  cases  we  are  able  to 
think  without  words  has  been  a  question.  Certainly, 
without  them  or  without  outward  signs,  the  thinking 
cannot  be  expressed.  And  any  powerfully  controlling 
influence  brought  to  bear  upon  the  human  mind  and 
heart,  as  was  the  case  with  the  inspired  man,  would 
also  control  and  modify  forms  and  manners  of  expres- 
sion. Sometimes,  in  the  passages  above,  words  seem 
to  have  been  used  ;  sometimes  they  were  only  affected 
and  controlled  in  the  material  imparted  or  in  the  man- 
ner of  such  impartation.  The  object  was,  of  course, 
to  secure  correctness  in  delivery  ;  that,  as  it  came  to 
the  recipient,  and  as  he  delivered  it,  it  should  be  the 
word  of  the  Lord,  and  therefore  a  true  word. 

We  have  thus  to  seek  some  form  of  expression  or 
word  which  will  include  these  varied  phenomena,  the 
natural  elevation,  the  morally  sanctifying  influence, 
the  divinely  sx)oken  word,  the  divinely  given  vision  or 
incident,  the  Divine  impulse  ;  and  these  as  related  to  the 
object  in  view,  whether  of  precept,  prediction,  rational 
deduction,  or  moral  insight.  "The  self -same  Spirit 
dividing  to  each  one  severally  as  He  will,"  thus,  "at 
sundry  times  and  in  divers  measures,"  secures  His  pur- 
pose, the  imi^artation  of  truth  to  man.  Plenary  has 
been  suggested  as  best  expressing  it :  plenary,  suffi- 
cient, adequate  to  the  end  divinely  proposed.  In  other 
words,  we  say  the  influence  exerted,  the  inspiration  is 
sufficient,  adequate,  to  th-    attainment  of  the  Divine 


54  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

object,  tliat  of  imparting  Divine  truth  to  man  ;  to  en- 
sure the  correct  delivery  of  the  messages  of  Divine  dic- 
tation. This  does  not,  of  course,  mean  plenary  as  to 
all  kinds  and  forms  of  knowledge,  geological,  chemi- 
cal, psychological,  physiological ;  but  so  as  to  the 
Divine  purjDose  in  view.  The  Divine  Agent,  in  such 
case,  uses  the  imperfect  vehicle  of  human  language 
and  human  expression  to  make  known  His  truth,  and 
to  convey  His  meaning.  He  is  able,  even  through 
these,  to  accomplish  His  object.  The  message,  in  some 
cases,  as  in  jDrediction,  may  be  but  imperfectly  under- 
stood, both  by  the  prophet  and  those  to  whom  he 
speaks  it.  But,  in  its  time,  the  full  meaning  can  and 
will  come  out.  Given  the  postulate  of  the  omnipresent 
wisdom  and  knowledge  of  the  inspiring  Agent,  and 
there  can  be  no  rational  doubt  or  fear  of  His  securing 
accurate  delivery  of  His  intended  message. 

If  this  be  so,  we  have  our  definition.  That  of 
Knapp  seems  to  meet  the  demand  in  this  respect : 
"  An  extraordinary  Divine  influence,  by  which  the  in- 
spired teacher  was  instructed,  what  and  how  he  should 
speak  in  discharging  the  duties  of  his  office."  That 
of  Dr.  Hodge  :  "  An  influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon 
selected  agents,  rendering  them  organs  of  God  for  the 
infallible  communication  of  His  will ;"  and  that  of 
Professor  Park  :  "A  Divine  influence  on  the  minds 
of  the  sacred  writers,  causing  them  to  teach  in  the 
best  x^ossible  manner  whatever  they  intended  to  teach, 
and  especially  to  communicate  religious  truth  without 
error, "  are  substantially  fhe  same.     Here  we  have  no 


INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE.  55 

attempted  explanation  of  the  phenomena.  We  have, 
however,  a  unifying  principle,  to  which  all  such  phe- 
nomena  may  be  related,  and  in  which  they  find  a 
rational  explanation. 

To  this  have  been  urged  various  objections  and  diffi- 
culties. Many  of  them  have  little  relevance  to  the  real 
issue  in  this  subject.  They  really  belong  to  kindred 
topics  and  departments  of  scriptural  investigation,  but 
are  not  essentially  involved  in  that  of  inspiration. 
When,  for  instance,  difficulties  are  urged,  in  connec- 
tion with  uncertainties  as  to  the  text,  various  readings, 
disputed  translations,  or  the  disputed  canonicity  of 
certain  books,  the  reply  is  manifest.  A  corrupt  text, 
or  a  wrong  translation,  or  an  imperfect  version,  or  a 
question  of  canonicity,  does  not  at  all  affect  the  char- 
acter, the  authority,  or  inspiration  of  that  which  is 
pure  and  genuine.  Inspiration  is  affirmed  only  of  the 
genuine  book,  and  of  the  pure  text.  Whether  or  not 
that  is  the  case,  must  be  decided  upon  historical  and 
critical  reasons  and  evidence. 

So,  too,  as  to  the  issues  of  fragmentary  construction, 
say  of  Old  Testament  books  ;  the  asserted  later  com- 
position, or  different  authorship  than  usually  supposed, 
of  some  of  these  books.  All  these  questions,  it  is  to 
be  said,  are  yet  at  issue.  The  higher  scholarship  is  to 
be  found  on  both  sides.  While  we  are  told  every  week 
that  it  is  all  on  one  side,  the  next  week  we  read  a 
learned  reply  from  the  other.  While,  moreover,  the 
old  scholarship  is  as  a  unit,  the  new  is  si)]it  uj)  into 
conflicting  theories.     But  whether  so  or  not,  and  how- 


56  INSPIRATION  OP  SCRIPTURE. 

ever  these  points  be  decided,  the  books,  as  we  now 
have  them,  whether  as  a  whole  or  in  parts,  have  re- 
ceived the  authentication  as  inspired  of  the  Master  and 
of  His  apostles.  "  The  Scripture,"  "  the  Scrix)tures,'* 
''the  law,"  "the  law  and  the  prophets,"  "the  law, 
the  prophets,  and  the  Psalms,"  and  whatever  their 
date  and  authorship,  are  thus  settled  by  Him  and  them 
as  the  inspired  Scriptures. 

Not  less  direct  is  the  reply  to  difficulties  urged, 
from  variations  of  language  in  quotations,  by  New  Tes- 
tament Avriters  and  speakers,  from  Old  Testament,  or 
that  of  late  Old  Testament  writers  of  those  that  are 
earlier.  The  removal  of  the  difficulty  will  come,  in 
recognition  or  discovery  of  the  jpurpose  for  which  the 
quotation  is  made — the  principle  controlling.  That 
princii:)le  may  be  sometimes  that  of  verbal  exactness, 
to  give  the  very  words.  In  others,  to  give  only  the 
idea  or  sense.  Sometimes  it  may  be  as  proof  ;  some- 
times to  indicate  only  similarities,  or  for  illustration. 
So  again,  such  quotation  may  be  from  the  Hebrew 
text,  or  from  the  Septuagint,  or  from  an  Aramaic  ver  • 
sion,  or  from  an  oral  Aramaic  gradually  formed,  and 
in  popular  usage.  And  then,  again,  from  whatever 
version,  it  might  have  been  targumed,  as  was  by  no 
means  unusual,  parajohrased  in  the  way  of  explana- 
tion, as  quoted.  Any  rational  supposition,  in  these 
respects,  avoids  conflict  in  the  domain  of  inspiration. 
Whatever  the  principle  of  quotation,  they  are  always 
thus  quoted  as  inspired,  authoritative. 

But  the  still  further  difficulty  is  urged  from  dis- 


INSPIRATION   OF  SCRIPTURE.  57 

crepancies  in  different  accounts  of  the  same  transac- 
tion— say  the  death  of  Sanl  in  the  Old  Testament,  or 
of  discourses  and  events  in  tlie  New  Testament.  These, 
it  is  urged,  are  inconsistent  with  any  other  inspiration 
than  that  of  natural  or  moral  elevation. 

Of  course,  if  the  discrepancy  amount  to  contradic- 
tion, it  is  inconsistent  not  only  with  inspiration  of  any 
kind,  even  that  which  is  natural,  but  also  with  his- 
toric truth.  Such  contradiction  cannot  be  affirmed  so 
long  as  any  supposable  possibility  of  explanation  can 
be  suggested.  The  discrepancy  or  difficulty  may  often 
be  removed  by  reference  to  the  specific  intentions  of 
the  inspired  writers  or  of  the  divinely  inspiring  Agent, 
in  regard  to  which  we  are  not  able  fully  to  decide. 
That  intent  may  have  regard,  in  one  case,  to  one  form 
of  words,  in  another  to  another.  In  one  of  these  cases 
a  certain  amount  and  arrangement  of  matter  may  have 
been  required  ;  in  another  it  may  have  been  different. 
Why  does  John  omit  the  institution  of  the  Lord's  Sup- 
per ?  the  agony  in  Gethsemane  ?  the  incident  of  the 
dying  malefactor  ?  How  is  it  that  he  alone  mentions 
that  the  discii^les  baptized  ?  Why  does  Luke  leave 
out  the  resurrection  of  Lazarus,  and  Matthew  the  para- 
ble of  the  prodigal  son  1  "  Ignorance  has  a  wide  range 
of  possibilities,"  and  any  supposable  hypothesis  saves 
ignorance  from  contradiction.  So,  too,  as  to  discrep- 
ancies as  to  accounts  of  the  same  transaction.  "  The 
generals  of  Henry  the  Fourth,"  says  a  living  writer, 
"  strove  to  tell  him  what  passed  after  he  was  wounded 
at  the  battle  of  Aumale  ;  and  no  two  of  them  agreed 


58  INSPIRATION  OF  SCRIPTURE. 

as  to  the  course  of  events  which  gave  them  the  victory. 
Two  armies  beheld  the  battle  of  Waterloo  ;  but  who 
can  tell  when  it  began  ?  At  ten  o'clock,  said  the  Duke 
of  Wellington  ;  at  half  -  past  eleven,  said  General 
Alam,  who  rode  at  his  side.  At  twelve,  according 
to  Napoleon  and  Davoust ;  and  at  one,  according  to 
Ney."  All,  x^erhaps,  right,  but  each  one  meant  a 
different  tiling  or  movement  which  he  called  and  re- 
garded as  the  beginning. 

One  other  of  these  supposed  difficulties  claims  atten- 
tion :  the  real  or  supposed  conflict  of  Scripture  with 
secular  history,  or  with  the  scientific  conclusions  of  the 
past  or  the  present  century.  To  this  the  reply  is  two- 
fold. Many  of  these  mistakes  and  conflicts  have  been 
found  to  be  no  mistakes  or  conflicts,  but  have  rather 
confirmed  the  claim  of  Scripture.  It  is  to  be  remem- 
bered, moreover,  that  this  language  of  Scripture  is 
popular,  is  in  the  form  of  the  contemporaneous  sci- 
ence, whatever  that  was.  The  j)roblem,  to  the  inspired 
writer,  or,  rather,  to  the  divinely  insiDiring  Agent,  was 
the  communication  of  Divine  truths  and  dealings 
through  the  medium  of  human  language,  and  this  in 
language  intelligible  to  the  actual  recijDients.  With 
such  an  imperfect  instrument  the  work  was  done.  It 
is  the  business  of  the  student  and  interpreter  to  find 
the  Divine  truth  in  this,  its  human  setting  ;  to  ascer- 
tain the  Divine  message,  or  the  Divine  act,  coming  in 
this  manner  to  human  reception.  We  are  constantly 
using  words  that,  in  their  etymology,  had  a  different 
meaning  ;  that  will,  to  sj^eakers  and  hearers  a  century 


INSPIRATIOX  OF  SCRIPTURE.  59 

hence,  be  still  further  modified  as  to  such  meaning. 
We  speak  of  natural  phenomena,  not  in  accordance 
with  scientilic  accuracy  ;  and  what  is  now  accurate 
will  not  be  so  fifty  years  hence.  Chemistry  now  says 
affinity.  A  hundred  years  ago  it  said  phlogiston.  A 
century  hence  it  may  find  a  better  term  than  either. 
At  the  same  time,'  there  is  no  particular  difficulty  in 
making  ourselves  intelligible  ;  in  making  substantially 
correct  communications.*  The  inspired  communica- 
tion, whether  a  precept,  or  a  fact,  or  a  logical  conclu- 
sion, a  revelation  of  Divine  or  human  character,  is  so 
made   as  to  convey  its  meaning — a  meaning  for  the 


*  Professor  Sanday,  in  his  Bampton  Lectures,  speaks  of  the  Tradi- 
tional and  the  Inductive  view  of  the  Canon  and  Inspiration.  It  is 
to  be  said  that  there  is  not  one  of  the  many  theories  on  this  subject 
that  is  not  traditional,  that  does  not  claim  to  be,  and  is  not,  to  some  de- 
gree, inductive.  The  traditional  view,  however,  first  received,  is  by 
each  intelligent  recipient,  for  himself,  inductively  certified.  The  induc- 
tive, whatever  its  processes  of  collocation  and  verification,  starts  with 
traditional  material  and  preconceptions.  Perhaps  the  distinction  of 
historical  and  critical  would  better  describe  the  two  classes  of  views. 
And  yet,  the  historical  does  not  entirely  leave  out  of  view  the  internal 
and  critical,  and  the  internal  and  critical  does  not  entirely  ignore  the 
external  and  historical.  It  is  the  undue  predominance  of  one  or  the 
other  that  is  to  be  avoided.  What  is  needed  is  the  full  induction  that 
will  take  in  and  fairly  deal  with  both  these  forms  of  material ;  that  will 
adjust  the  relative  claims  of  each.  In  the  confusion  of  recent  conflict 
the  necessity  of  this  is  becoming  manifest.  As  it  is  intelligently  recog- 
nized and  striven  for,  much  of  this  confusion  will  disappear.  Tradi- 
tional, as  we  shall  see,  has  two  meanings— one  of  these  a  bad  one.  It 
is,  therefore,  always  an  avaih\ble  ambiguity  with  which  to  discount 
beforehand  the  position  of  an  opponent. 


GO  INSPIRATION  OF  SCKIPTUKE. 

reader  of  Scripture,  coming  to  it  in  earnest,  truthful, 
prayerful  examination. 

Lee  on  Inspiration. 

Jamiesou  on  Inspiration. 

Manly  on  Inspiration. 

Cliarteris  on  Cliristian  Scriptures. 

Robson  on  the  Bible,  its  Revelation,  Inspiration,  etc. 

Hodge's  discussion,  and  Cave  on  Old  Testament  Inspiration. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

TRADITION-,    MYSTERY,    MIRACLES. 

Tradition. — Mystery. — Evidences  of  Ciiristian  Revelation. 

Intijmately  connected  with  the  subject  of  the  canon 
of  "Scripture,  and  its  authority  as  that  of  an  inspired 
revelation,  is  that  of  tradition — an  authority  addi- 
tional, one  of  a  different  form,  and  coming  through  a 
different  process,  but  originating  in  the  same  Divine 
source  ;  in  other  words,  is  there  a  revelation  and  in- 
spiration in  the  Church  ?  Sometimes  it  may  be  in  the 
line  of  its  asserted  earthly  head,  the  successors  of 
Peter  ;  sometimes  in  the  whole  Church,  finding  exjDres- 
sion  in  conciliar  decision  ;  sometimes  in  the  concurring 
voice  of  the  successive  episcopate.  The  question,  thus, 
is  not  that  of  historical  tradition,  written  or  otherwise. 
This,  of  course,  not  infallible,  has  its  value.  Our 
knowledge  of  the  past,  secular  as  well  as  religious, 
scientific  as  well  as  popular,  first  comes  to  us  in  that 
way.  As  it  thus  comes,  in  the  first  instance,  it  is  sub- 
sequently verified,  or  proved  to  be  reliable,  by  exami- 
nation of  its  evidence  ;  the  reasons,  in  view  of  which 
others  before  us  have  given  it  acceptance.  In  this 
sense  of  the  word,  tradition  is  a  source  not  only  of  in- 
formation, but  often  of  verification. 


02  TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES. 

The  issue,  however,  in  this  matter  of  tradition,  as 
related  to  Scripture,  or  as  a  source  of  Divine  informa- 
tion additional  to  Scripture,  is,  with  reference  to  it  in 
one  particular  form,  that  which  is  oral.  The  Council 
of  Trent  affirms  the  existence  of  such  tradition,  and 
places  it  on  a  level  with  the  written  Scripture.  It  is 
the  divinely  given  and  transmitted  word,  divinely 
given  and  preserved  in  oral  form.  There  is  thus,  in 
the  Church,  a  depositum  for  all  ages  ;  its  infallible 
Head,  or  its  infallibly  directed  Councils,  declaring,  in 
particular  cases,  and  as  needed,  what  is  its  substance 
— the  material  of  its  teaching  and  decisions. 

To  state  this  claim  explicitly  is  to  refute  and  dispose 
of  it.  There  is  no  scriptural  reason,  no  rational  evi- 
dence outside  of  Scripture,  by  which  it  can  be  sus- 
tained. Doubtless,  as  St.  John  says,  there  were  many 
sayings  of  our  Lord  that  were  not  written  in  his  book  ; 
and,  we  may  add,  not  in  any  other  of  the  Gospels. 
But,  so  far  as  regards  the  knowledge  of  the  Church, 
they  have  passed  away.  Oral  tradition  does  not  even 
attempt  to  reproduce  them.  So  with  the  unrecorded 
words  and  truths  of  apostolic  preaching.  No  effort  is 
made  to  reproduce  them.  Oral  tradition,  now,  rather 
undertakes  to  say  what  they  meant  in  that  which  is 
recorded.  St.  John,  indeed,  does  tell  of  one  oral  tradi- 
tion getting  into  circulation,  during  his  time,  which  he 
corrects  as  giving  a  wrong  impression.  And,  within 
the  next  hundred  years,  we  find  opposing  views  ap- 
pealing to  oral  tradition  as  sustaining  oj^posite  conclu- 
sions. 


TRAIttTION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES.  63 

The  issue  here  is  not  the  comparative  value  of  truth, 
oral  or  written.  Truth  is  truth,  and  has  its  vahie, 
however  transmitted.  The  real  issue  is  as  to  whether 
the  oral  mode  is  a  reliable  one.  This,  too,  not  only, 
or  mainly  of  facts,  and  for  short  periods,  but  of  doc- 
trines, and  for  all  time.  The  clear  statement  of  the 
question  suggests  its  answer.  There  is  no  satisfactory 
evidence  of  any  such  body  of  traditional  truth  beyond 
the  lifetime  of  the  founders  of  Christianity.  Had  any 
such  existed,  its  mode  of  transmission  would  have 
vitiated  its  reliability.  In  such  process  of  oral  trans- 
mission it  would  have  lost  its  definiteness,  and  gath- 
ered new  and  erroneous  material.  In  closing  this  sub- 
ject, it  is  well  to  note  the  ambiguity  in  usage  as  to  this 
word  tradition.  A  traditionalist,  in  one  sense,  is  one 
who  accepts  indiscriminately  what  comes  from  the 
past,  and  without  verification.  In  another  sense,  it  is 
one  who  accepts  oral  tradition.  In  still  another  it  is 
one  wlio  accepts  knowledge  and  truth  from  the  past,  but 
verifies  it  by  careful  investigation.  The  word  is  now  a 
favorite  one  with  a  certain  class  to  describe  any  long- 
established  opinion,  with,  of  course,  the  insinuation 
that  it  has  been  and  is  thus  held,  simply  as  received 
and  without  verification.  There  is  often  a  great  want 
of  truth  in  tlie  terms  by  which  men  describe  their  oid- 
l^onents. 

This  subject  fifty  years  ago,  in  the  Oxford  contro- 
versy, warmly  contested,  has  largely  lost  its  interest. 
The  opposite  extreme  now  is  that  which  holds  all 
established  opinions,  and  from  that  fact,  as  traditional 


64  TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES. 

and  doubtful,  or  at  least  obsolete.  The  subject,  as  be- 
tween Rome  and  Oxford  on  one  side,  and  Protestant- 
ism on  the  other,  is  exhaustively  treated  in  Goode's 
"  Divine  Rule  of  Faith  and  Practice." 

Mysteey. 

This,  like  tradition,  has  its  connection  v^ith  Scrip- 
ture, and  brings  out  the  fact  that  in  Divine  revelation 
there  are  truths  naturally  shut,  hidden  from,  or  tran- 
scending human  discovery,  if  not  human  comprehen- 
sion. The  word  ordinarily  and  po^jularly  expresses 
the  last,  that  which  is  incomprehensible.  In  this  sense 
it  is  frequently  employed  in  the  sacramental  contro- 
versy. Thus  employed,  it  frequently  means,  not  an 
incomprehensibility,  but  a  contradiction — as,  for  in- 
stance, a  bodily  2)resence,  which  in  its  very  term  bodily 
is  limited,  affirmed  as  ubiquitous,  unlimited,  omni- 
present. Affirmations,  however,  without  any  such 
contradiction,  may  be  incomprehensible.  They  may 
be  apprehended  as  facts,  as  in  certain  of  their  bearings 
and  applications.  At  the  same  time,  in  themselves,  as 
in  their  full  and  ultimate  explanation,  they  transcend 
all  human  capacity  of  comprehension.  The  Divine 
perfection,  for  instance,  the  Trinity  in  unity,  the  union 
of  the  Divine  and  human  in  the  jDerson  of  Christ,  con- 
stitute illustrations  of  such  truths.  They  are  revealed 
as  truths,  not  to  be  fully  construed,  but,  in  faith,  ac- 
cepted and  followed  in  their  practical  application. 

Whether  the  word  fj-uffrr/piov  is  ever  used  in  this  sense 
in  the  New  Testament  is  a  matter  of  dispute.     Pre- 


TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES.  65 

doniinantly  its  usage  is  different.  In  1  Tim,  3  :  16,  how- 
ever, and  in  1  Cor.  14  :  2  it  rather  seems  to  incline  to 
this  meaning.  The  one  the  great  mystery  of  godliness 
before  and  after  its  revelation  ;  the  other,  a  man  speak- 
ing in  an  unknown  tongue,  incomprehensible  to  his 
hearers.  Its  more  frequent  use  is  different.  In  such 
use  it  describes  things  undiscoverable  in  themselves,  or 
hidden  for  a  time  from  human  knowledge,  but  in  due 
time  divinely  revealed.  The  Gosjjel,  in  this  sense,  is  a 
mystery,  "  the  mystery  hidden  from  ages  and  genera- 
tions, but  revealed  in  Christ"  (1  Cor.  4:1;  15  :  51  ; 
Eph.  1  :  9  ;  3  :  3).  In  this  sense,  all  truth  depending 
for  its  knowledge  upon  Divine  revelation  is  mystery. 

But  there  is  a  still  further  sense  in  which  this  w^ord  is 
sometimes  employed  :  to  describe  a  truth  symbolically 
exhibited  ;  hidden,  or  secret  in  the  symbol.  This  is 
its  meaning  in  Eph.  5  :  32  and  in  Rev.  17  :  5.  The  great 
truth  of  the  sacred  union  of  Christ  with  His  Church,  con- 
tained, or  hidden  behind,  symbolically  exhibited  in  the 
sacred  union  of  the  wife  and  husband,  the  adulterous 
woman,  the  mystery  or  symbol  of  an  apostate  church. 
This  is  really  its  proper  usage  as  related  to  the  sacra- 
ments ;  not  a  contradiction,  or  even  an  incomprehensi- 
bility, but  the  hidden  or  symbolic  truth  in  or  behind 
the  sacrament  of  spiritual  purification  with  one  ;  of 
spiritual  loyalty,  and  life,  and  growth  in  the  other. 

This  gives  us  the  three  senses  of  the  word  :  {a)  Mys- 
tery, an  incomprehensibility,  but  not  a  contradiction. 
(6)  Mystery,  a  truth  needing  revelation  to  brin^  it  to 
human  knowledge,     (c)  Mystery,  a  truth  symbolically 


66  TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  ]VIIRACLES. 

exhibited.     (See  Hatch,  "  Essays  on  Biblical  Grreek," 
pp.  57,  62.) 

Proofs  of  Revelation. 

We  thus  reach  the  clistinct  jioint  of  the  proofs  or  evi- 
dences in  view  of  which  revelation,  a7rouaXvi/-i;,  spe- 
cial Divine  communication,  as  distinct  from  qjavepooffi?, 
natural  manifestation  of  God  to  man,  is  believed  and 
asserted.  In  Christian  countries  this  fact  is  found 
in  actual  acceptance  ;  is,  so  to  speak,  a  providential 
inheritance.  As  thus  preoccupying  the  ground,  it 
may,  from  opponents,  demand  positive  disproof  of  that 
which  is  thus  accepted.  With  its  recipients,  and  as 
related  to  its  full  and  intelligent  acceptance,  it  de- 
mands thorough  investigation  ;  that  not  only  the  be- 
lief itself,  but  the  reasons  and  evidences  in  view  of 
which  it  is  held,  should  be  clearly  seen  and  exhibited. 
Some  of  these  may  be  briefly  stated  : 

(a)  One  of  these  is  the  character  and  effects  of  this 
asserted  Christian  revelation.  "  Christendom,"  said 
Coleridge,  "  is  the  argument  for  Christianity."  The 
ideal  Christendom  would  be  a  perfect  moral  demon- 
stration. The  actual,  with  all  its  defects  and  failures, 
reveals  the  same  conclusion  ;  still  attests  its  Divine 
source  and  origin  ;  what  it  has  done  and  is  doing  in 
the  world  ;  what  are  its  undoubted  effects,  moral,  so- 
cial, and  spiritual,  as  consistently  applied,  and  by  its 
consistent  disciples  proclaims  its  superhuman,  its  Di- 
vine character,  "The  tree"  here  ''is  known  by  its 
fruit."     Christianity,   as  compared  with   other  relig- 


TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES.  67 

ions,  is  superior  in  moral  purify,  as  in  spiritual  and 
social  elevation.  Christianity,  as  comj)ared  with  irre- 
ligion,  is  as  the  heavenly  to  the  earthly.  As  thus  such 
an  existing  world  fact,  of  such  a  character,  absolutely 
and  comparatively,  it  demands  acceptance.  The  al- 
ternative to  that  acceptance  is  irreligion.  When  it  is 
rejected  it  is  not  for  Mohammedanism,  or  Buddhism, 
or  Confucianism.  Whatever  may  be  said  of  exceptions 
to  this,  they  are  so  exceptional  that  they  cannot  be 
made  an  element  of  calculation.  The  alternative  is 
Christianity  or  nothing  ;  Christianity  or  i:)ractical  athe- 
ism. To  a  serious,  earnest  man  this  is  now  the  only 
religion.  (Hiristianity  thus,  in  itself,  in  its  character, 
its  teachings  and  effects,  as  in  its  alternative,  affords 
evidence  of  its  Divine  origin. 

(&)  Along  with  this,  the  essential  character  of  Chris- 
tianity, are  the  facts,  historical  and  evidential,  con- 
nected with  its  founding — the  ministry  and  life  of  Christ 
and  those  of  His  apostles,  and  their  immediate  con- 
sequences. This  ministry  gathered  in  and  organized  a 
community  largely  made  up  of  previous  enemies,  which 
has  perpetuated  itself,  with  institutions  and  practices 
that  have  kei)t  it  unbrokenly  in  public  existence.  The 
apostles  testify  as  ear-witnesses  of  the  Master's  words, 
as  eye-witnesses  of  His  works  and  life.  Their  testi- 
mony is  corroborated  by  that  of  other  disciples  con- 
temporaneous ;  by  that  of  converts,  of  same  date,  con- 
firming thus  what  they  had  j)reviously  opposed.  The 
rite  of  baptism  organizing  these  believers  into  a  com- 
munity, the  Lord's  Sux)X)er  a  memorial  of  His  death, 


68  TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES. 

the  Cliristian  Sunday  taking  the  place  of  the  old  Sab- 
bath as  also  a  memorial  of  His  resurrection — all  these 
gave  emphasis  and  definiteness  to  the  events  with 
which  they  were  connected. 

So,  too,  it  was,  in  the  effect  of  the  Gospels  and  Epis- 
tles, as  reaffirming  in  a  written  form  what  the  Christian 
body,  from  its  own  knowledge,  first  accepted.  No  less 
significant  as  giving  historical  reality  and  value  to  this 
testimony  of  Christian  believers,  is  that  of  their  op- 
ponents and  persecutors.  All  bring  before  us  the  his- 
torical fact  of  a  new  form  of  religious  belief  ;  this  rest- 
ing upon  the  doings  and  teachings  and  life  of  its 
Founder — these  facts  affirmed  by  eye-witnesses  ;  ac- 
cepted, as  thus  affirmed  by  contemporaries  ;  both  alike 
taking  these  asserted  facts  as  the  controlling  j)rinciples 
of  their  lives — living  by  them,  and  in  many  cases  dying 
for  them.  Such  evidence,  in  regard  to  any  other  his- 
torical fact,  would  be  accepted  as  moral  demonstration. 

(c)  But  the  evidence  thus  far  is  all  in  the  sphere  of 
the  natural.  There  is,  further,  that  which  is  above 
nature,  supernatural,  miraculous.  Supernatural  some- 
times means  only  superphysical.  Here  we  use  it  in  its 
ordinary  and  more  extended  signification.  It  is  the 
extraordinary  manifestation  to  rational  beings  of  the 
presence  and  agency  of  God.  It  may  be  through 
natural  powers  and  agencies,  it  may  be  with  some- 
thing additional ;  but  the  essential  feature  in  it  is  the 
manifestation  of  Divine  presence  and  working.  This 
evidence,  in  connection  with  Christianity,  is  afforded 
in  different  forms. 


TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES.  69 

(a)  First,  as  its  most  wonderful  exliibition,  is  that 
of  tire  personality  of  its  Founder.  Jesus  Christ  is  the 
miracle,  the  supernatural  fact  of  human  history.  The 
most  unbelieving  have,  in  substance,  over  and  over 
again  admitted  it.  As  men  stand  in  His  presence,  and 
study  His  personality,  and  note  the  spirit  of  His  life, 
the  involuntary  confession  comes  that  here  is  a  phe- 
nomenon without  its  parallel.  If  natural,  unlike  any 
other  in  the  world's  knowledge  or  experience.  "  Be- 
hold the  Man  !"  You  may,  perhaps,  deny  that  He 
wrought  miracles  ;  but  you  cannot  deny  that  He  is  the 
miracle,  unique,  unexampled,  transcendent.  He  is 
the  truth.  His  words  are  certified  as  those  of  the  God 
of  truth. 

{b)  And  as  the  personality  of  the  Lord  Jesus  is  thus 
supernatural,  so  it  may  be  said  is  His  teaching.  It 
transcends  all  natural  explanation  of  its  origin. 
Efforts  have  been  made  to  compare  it  with  that  of 
other  religious  teachers  -,  but  the  effort  only  demon- 
strates the  hopelessness  of  the  comparison,  the  perfec- 
tion above  nature  and  beyond  nature  of  His  moral  and 
spiritual  teaching.  In  that  teaching,  as  in  His  person, 
w^e  see  the  supernatural,  the  Divine. 

(c)  Coincident  with  these,  we  may  say,  and  included 
in  them,  are  His  manifestations  of  the  suj)ernatural  in 
work  and  action.  We  may  reverently  say  that  such  a 
man,  such  a  being  could  not  have  been  only  natural  in 
His  words  and  actions.  To  Him  the  supernatural  was 
natural.  His  w^orks  were  those  of  power,  exhibitive  of 
control  in  the  domain  of  physical  nature.     Most  of 


70  TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES. 

them,  further,  were  works  of  compassion,  love,  relief 
to  the  diseased  and  suffering.  One  or  two,  temporarily 
of  judgment,  had  in  view  permanent  results  of  benefit 
in  the  way  of  instruction  ;  but,  all  alike,  His  works, 
as  Ilis  teachings  and  person,  make  manifest  that  God 
was  with  Him.  "  My  Father  worketli,  and  I  work," 
is  His  own  declaration.  The  character  of  those  works 
sustains  His  declaration  :  works  of  power  controlling 
nature  ;  works  of  love  and  compassion  relieving  natu- 
ral suffering  ;  words  of  knowledge  revealing  the  future. 
They  were  thus  revelations  of  omnipotence,  of  omnis- 
cience, of  love.  As  with  Nicodemus,  so  comes  now  the 
attestation,  "No  one  can  do,"  could  do,  "  these  mira- 
cles unless  God  were  with  him." 

{d)  And  these  miraculous  powers,  asserted  and  exer- 
cised by  the  Master,  are  by  Him  conferred  upon  and 
promised  to  the  a]30stles  ;  authenticated  by  Him  as 
possessed  by  Moses  and  the  prophets  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. Every  affirmation  of  revelation,  a  supernatural 
fact,  implies  miracle  as,  in  some  manner,  involved  in 
its  bestowal. 

As  to  the  speculative  difficulties  in  the  way  of  the 
acceptance  of  miracles,  it  is  to  be  said  that,  to  the  in- 
telligent tlieist,  they  have  no  existence.  They  virtu- 
ally rest  upon  the  assumptions  of  naturalism  or  mate- 
rialism. Human  wills,  for  sufficient  reasons,  modify 
the  course  of  nature  and  natural  forces.  On  the 
grounds  of  naturalism  we  can  have  only  natural  phe- 
nomena. Bring  in  those  that  are  Divine,  and  the 
results  will  be  supernatural. 


TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES.  71 

The  scriptural  words  descriptive  of  iidracles  have 
their  signilicance.  One  of  these,  dvyajni;,  rnnj^  ex- 
presses the  truth  of  the  Divine  power  put  forth  to  its 
production.  Another,  Oavjdaffia,  ^'7?,  brings  out  its 
character  as  wonderful  and  striking  ;  as  does  repai^ 
i^3io,  still  more  strongly  ;  while  the  other  two  words, 
<jt]fx£iov^  nix,  and  epyov^  nTS;ri3o,  describe  their  signifi- 
cance and  efficacy.  They  are  exhibitions  of  j)ower, 
wonderful,  jjortentous  signs,  works  of  Divine  origin 
and  doing.  Still  further  distinction  has  been  made  of 
miracles —o/<o,  vno,  and  VTtep  natural.  The  first, 
like  some  of  the  x)lagues  of  Egypt,  natural  as  to  the 
matter,  supernatural  in  quantity  and  time,  as  predict- 
ed. The  second,  like  the  destruction  of  Sodom  by 
volcanic  action,  unusual  as  to  manner,  supernatural 
as  predicted.  The  last,  as  walking  on  the  water  ; 
the  feeding  five  thousand  on  the  few  loaves  and  fishes  ; 
the  turning  water  into  wine,  above  nature,  in  mate- 
rial, as  in  its  accompaniments  and  precedings.  In  dif- 
ferent modes,  and  yet  alike,  the  Divine  agency  in  each 
is  exhibited. 

To  all  these  forms  of  evidence  is  added  that  of  the 
correlation  of  the  truths  of  revelation,  with  which  they 
are  connected,  to  the  necessities  and  aspirations  of 
human  nature  ;  to  man  as  a  spiritual  being  ;  as  igno- 
rant and  sinful,  and  yet  with  spiritual  wants,  and  de- 
sires, and  aspirations  ;  finding  out  from  nature  his 
wants,  but  finding  no  natural  suj^ply  to  them.  The 
Divine  Spirit  in  and  through  these  truths,  testifying 
to  the  human  spirit,  reveals  the  way  of  life,  of  duty, 


72  TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES. 

and  of  safety.  "  If  any  man  will  do  the  will  of  Grod, 
so  far  as  that  will  in  these  truths  is  clear,  is  the  assur- 
ance' '  he  shall  know  further  and  fully.  As  he  does, 
so  shall  he  know,  until,  thus  in  doing,  his  knowledge 
is  fully  perfected. 

The  objections  and  difficulties  as  to  miracles  may  be 
briefly  stated. 

{a)  Miracles  are  impossible.  This  is  true  upon  the 
hypothesis  of  atheism  ;  but  "  with  God  all  things  are 
possible."  The  Author  of  nature,  for  sufficient  reason, 
may  suspend  or  modify  the  operation  of  natural  forces. 

{b)  Miracles,  if  possible,  are  not  provable.  As  con- 
trary to  experience,  evidence  cannot  establish  the  fact 
of  their  occurrence.  But  evidence,  in  all  cases,  testi- 
fies to  experience  and  its  results.  It  thus  shows  that 
miracles  are  in  accordance  with  that  particular  experi- 
ence, and  not  contrary  to,  but  only  absent  from  other 
experience.  The  fallacy  here  is  in  the  non-distribu- 
tion of  the  middle  term  experience,  and  in  the  assump- 
tion that  facts,  not  present  in  any  j)articular  experi- 
ence, are  contradicted  by  it. 

(c)  Miracles,  or  the  facts  called  miracles,  are  possi- 
ble and  pr9vable,  but  have  not  been,  and  are  not 
proved.  But,  if  admitted  to  be  provable,  the  actual 
evidence  afforded  in  character  and  degree,  is  all  that 
could  be  asked  or  gotten,  for  any  fact  of  human  accept- 
ance and  belief.  Further,  when  it  is  said,  "not 
I)roved,"  the  question,  in  reply,  may  be,  "  not  proved" 
to  whom  ?  The  proof  has  been  accepted  as  satisfactory 
by  men  of  every  order  and  class  of  mind,  of  cultiva- 


TRADITION,  MYSTERY,  MIRACLES.  73 

tiorij  and  of  character — Newton,  Brewster,  Arnold, 
Guizot,  the  African,  the  Hottentot,  the  Indian.  What 
men,  of  every  ckiss,  and  century  after  century,  accept 
must  be  regarded  as  proved.  Proof  is  not  apt  to  con- 
vince opponents  who  have  assumed  their  position. 

{(T)  Miracles  are  possible  and  provable,  and,  perhaps, 
have  taken  place  ;  but,  if  it  can  be  done,  they  must  be 
regarded  as  natural.  Here  we  have  the  naturalistic 
explanations  :  "  Quickened  process  of  nature"  (01s- 
liausen)  ;  "  increased  nourishing  power  of  the  bread" 
(Lange)  ;  "  words  of  Jesus,  misunderstood  in  the 
storm"  (Paulus)  ;  "the  calm  faith  of  Jesus  when  the 
helmsman  despaired  of  safety"  (Schenkel)  ;  "  a  symbol 
of  analogous  mental  phenomena"  (Schleiermacher). 

"  Let  the  account  stand,"  says  Luthardt,  in  ox)posi- 
tion  to  all  this — "let  the  account  stand  as  it  reads." 
"It  is  idle,  and  worse — cowardly,"  says  Dr.  Thomp- 
son, "  to  withhold  our  faith  in  a  Bible  miracle  until 
we  can  find  or  invent  some  way  in  which  the  thing- 
may  have  liaj)pened,  without  any  great  miracle  after 
all." 

The  truth,  exaggerated  and  caricatured  in  most  of 
these  objections,  is,  that  miracle,  as  unusual  and  ex- 
traordinary, demands  extraordinary  evidence.  That 
evidence  has  been  and  is  afforded.  The  establishment, 
moreover,  of  one  or  two  central  miracles,  say  that  of 
the  giving  of  the  law  at  Sinai  of  the  Old  Testament,  or 
of  the  resurrection  of  our  Lord  in  the  New  Testament, 
makes  credible  many  of  a  subordinate  character. 


CHAPTER  VIT. 


THE   DOCTKINE    OF   GOD. 


The  idea  and  its  definitions. — Forms  of  Scriptural  statement. — The  two 
kinds  of  proof  of  Divine  existence. — Forms  of  unbelief  as  to  this 
truth. 

The  transition  is  natural  from  revelation  to  its  Au- 
tlior,  and  central  truth  :  the  Being,  in  this  revelation, 
making  Himself  known  to  men.  "  In  the  beginning 
God"  is  the  opening  sentence  in  that  revelation — "in 
the  beginning  God."  The  word,  in  its  etymology,  ex- 
presses one  of  His  attributes — that  of  goodness — that 
His  existence  and  working  blesses  His  creatures.  The 
question  has  been  further  asked,  Can  there  be  any 
word,  any  definition  of  Him  in  His  essential  l)eing  and 
character  1  Here,  as  in  other  things,  we  need  bear  in 
mind  that  exhaustive  definitions  are  difficult,  if  not 
impossible.  We  have  to  content  ourselves  with  those 
that  are  differentiative  ;  that  distinguish  the  object 
from  all  others.  This  meets  the  necessity  of  human 
thought,  as  it  is  the  limit  of  human  capacity.  "  You 
may,"  says  a  living  writer,*  "  deny  the  idea  of  the  In- 
finite as  not  clear  ;  and  clear  it  is  not  if  nothing  but 
the  mental  picture  of  an  outline  deserve  that  word, 

*  James  Martineau. 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF   GOD.  75 

But  if  a  thoiigli-t  is  clear  which  sets  apart,  without 
danger  of  being  confounded  with  another,  when  it  can 
exactly  keep  its  own  in  speech  and  reasoning,  without 
forfeit  and  without  encroachment — if,  in  short,  logical 
elements  consist,  not  in  the  idea  of  a  limit,  but  in  the 
limit  of  the  idea,  then  no  sharpest  image  of  any  iinite 
quantity  is  clearer  than  the  thought  of  the  In  finite. " 
This  thought  goes  into  every  such  definition.  The  "  I 
am"  of  Ex.  3  :  14,  the  self -existent  being,  the  source  of 
all  other. beings,  would  be  an  illustration.  "  The  most 
perfect  being,  and  the  source  of  all  others,  brings  out 
the  feature  of  moral  23erfection  as  of  self-sufficiency. 
This  perfection  is  not  only  related  to  its  objects,  but 
absolute  in  its  essential  character  and  attributes. 

At  the  same  time,  and  in  connection  with  passages 
of  this  character,  are  others  predominantly  speaking 
of  God  in  His  relations  ;  in  the  perfection  of  those  re- 
lations to  His  creatures.  He  thus  makes  Himself  an 
intelligible  object  of  contemplation  to  His  creatures. 
He  reveals  Himself  as  Creator,  Preserver,  Provider, 
Benefactor,  and  Supreme  Ruler  ;  adapts  Himself  to 
their  capacity  of  comprehension.  Every  such  relation, 
moreover,  is  not  only  intelligible,  but  practical ;  makes 
its  demand  upon  human  dependence  as  upon  human 
affection  and  obligation.  "  Jehovah  is  the  true  God  ; 
He  is  the  everlasting  King.  He  hath  made  the  earth 
by  His  power,  He  hath  established  the  world  by  His 
wisdom,  and  hath  stretched  out  the  heaven  by  His 
discretion"  (Jer.  10:10,  12).  "God  that  made  the 
world,  and  all  things  therein"  (Acts  17  :  24).     "  Which 


76  THE  DOCTRINE   OF   GOD 

made  the  heaven,  and  earth,  the  sea,  and  all  that 
therein  is  :  which  keepeth  truth  forever"  (Ps.  146  :  6). 
So  too  Isa.  42  :  5  ;  45  :  6,  7.  He  thus  describes  Him- 
self as  not  only  the  Infinite,  the  Self -Existent,  but  as 
the  Creator,  Governor,  Preserver,  and  Benefactor  of 
all  His  creatures  ;  as  the  Father  of  these  His  creatures, 
of  all  intelligent,  rational,  and  spiritual  beings. 

Pkoofs  of  Divine  Existence. 

In  the  discussion  of  this  subject  two  perfectly  dis- 
tinct questions  are  frequently  confounded.  One  of 
these  is.  How  do  we  actually  get  this  idea  or  truth  of 
God — ^of  the  Divine  existence  and  personality  1  An- 
other is.  How  can  this  idea  or  truth,  and,  in  whatever 
way  gotten,  be  rationally  verified,  shown  to  be  true  ? 
To  validate,  for  instance,  the  cosmological  or  teleologi- 
cal  argument,  it  is  not  necessary  that  it  be  affirmed  as 
previously  involved  in  acts  of  consciousness  ;  as,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  denial  of  the  derivation  of  this 
truth  from  consciousness  does  not  interfere  with  con- 
clusions from  any  of  these  others.  As  to  the  first  of 
these  questions,  How  do  we  actually  get  our  knowl- 
edge of  this  truth  ?  it  must  be  said  that,  like  those  to 
whom  the  Old  and  New  Testament  Scrijptures  were 
given,  we  find  ourselves,  prior  to  all  proof,  in  actual 
possession.  We  have  received  it  by  inheritance  from 
our  Christian  parents,  as  they  did  from  their  patriarchal 
ones.  Whether  it  has  ever  been  received  in  any  other 
way  may  well  be  a  question.  With  those  who  have 
lost,  or  obscured  it  by  retrogression  into  conditions  of 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF   GOD.  77 

« 

lowest  savageism,  the  tendency  is  to  go  lower,  not 
higher.  If  they  get  or  recover  it,  it  is  brought  to  them 
by  the  civilized  missionary  or  teacher.  Theistic  peo- 
ples, monotheistic  i^eoples  especially,  as  a  matter  of 
fact,  before  they  verify  this  truth,  get  it  from  those 
preceding  them.  And  the  most  rational  supposition, 
in  view  of  all  the  facts  of  the  case,  is  that  of  primaeval 
revelation.  It  has  been  easy  to  imagine,  and  we  have 
all  read  descriptions  of  the  process  and  stages  by  which 
the  ape,  rising  into  the  stone  man,  and  the  stone  man 
into  the  iron  man,  and  the  iron  man  into  the  hunter, 
and  the  hunter  into  the  grazier  and  tiller  of  the  soil, 
and  the  tiller,  of  the  soil  into  the  citizen,  the  enlight- 
ened, moral,  and  spiritual  Christian.  But  the  actual 
facts  do  not  correspond.  Below  the  condition  of  the 
first  men  in  Genesis — that  of  tillers  of  the  soil — the 
tendency  is  to  go  lower,  not  higher.  But  whether 
thus  or  not,  the  question  of  the  j^roof  of  this  is  one  of 
a  different  character.  So,  too,  in  reference  to  the  as- 
sertion that  God  is  known  in  the  action  of  conscious- 
ness ;  that  the  self -consciousness  of  the  dependent  ego 
is  the  natural  condition  to  the  knowledge  of  the  All- 
Sufficient  source  of  dependence  ;  or  that  human  nature 
is  so  constituted  that  the  idea,  however  presented, 
validates  itself  as  a  reality.  Still  all  this  is  distinct 
from  the  proof  of  the  truth  thus  accex)ted.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  fact,  we  have  it.     How  is  it  verified  ? 

Here  Ave  have  the  old  division  of  the  proofs,  a  iwiori 
and  a  posterioj'L  The  former  of  these — i\\(i  a  priori  ot 
one  kind — is  that  from  cause  to  effect,  or  from  reason 


78  THE   J)()CTliINE   OF   GOD. 

to  consequent  ;  of  another  is  that  from  a  priori  truths, 
or  intuitions,  necessarily  given  as  the  occasion  is  pre- 
sented. The  argument  of  Anselm,  from  the  idea  of 
perfect  being,  as  a  cause  or  reason,,  to  infer  actual  ex- 
istence an  effect,  included  in  that  idea  or  cause,  is  an 
illustration  of  the  former.  On  the  principle  of 
Anselm' s  realistic  philosophy,  that  to  every  idea 
there  was  a  reality  ;  that  the  logical  and  ontological 
existences  were  identical,  this  argument  was  a  valid 
one.  On  any  other  it  is  defective  ;  has  never  been  ac- 
cepted as  satisfactory. 

The  other  form  of  this  a  p>'>'fori  argument  is  that 
from  a  priori  truths  or  necessary  intuitions.  The  idea 
of  perfect  or  infinite  being,  it  is  affirmed,  is  a  necessity 
of  human  thought ;  and  as  thus  a  rational  necessity, 
must  be  accepted  as  true.  Think  space,  and  you  can- 
not avoid  thinking  infinite  space.  Think  time,  and 
you  cannot  avoid  thinking  infinite  duration.  Think 
being,  and  you  necessarily  think  infinite  being. 
Whether  the  step  in  this  last,  being,  is  immediate  as 
with  space  and  time,  has  been  a  question.  With  Clarke 
the  intermediate  was  the  necessity  of  substance,  or 
being,  as  necessarily  implied  in  these  of  space  and 
time  ;  with  others  this  intermediate  is  the  causal  idea- 
finite  being  demanding  that  of  the  infinite  to  account  for 
its  existence.  This  last,  however,  brings  it  within  the 
domain  of  the  a  posteriori.,  from  effect  to  cause.  Tak- 
ing this  causal  idea,  the  argument  is  a  valid  one.  'J^hat 
which  comes  to  us  as  a  necessity  of  human  thought, 
and  which    comes    as  a  reality,   must  be    accepted. 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF  GOD.  79 

Kant's  distinction  of  sx)ecukitive  and  practical  reason, 
as  vitiating  this  conclnsion,  cannot  be  sustained. 

Whatever  the  value  of  tliis  argument,  one  of  its  re- 
sults passes  over  for  further  use.  It  validates  the 
truth  of  infinitude  in  space  and  time  directly,  if  not  in 
Ijeing  ;  of  infinitude  in  being  as  the  necessary  causal 
ground  of  finite  being.  We  pass  on  to  the  other  class 
of  proofs,  the  a  posteriori. 

{a)  One  of  these  has  been  called  that  of  contingency, 
revealed  in  the  fact  of  changes  in  the  world,  of  matter, 
and  of  existence  ;  of  things  beginning  to  be  and  com- 
ing to  certain  forms  of  termination.  The  finite,  the 
dependent,  the  changeable,  find  their  explanation  in 
something  joreceding  and  continuing.  This,  whether 
regarded  as  a  force  or  a  personality,  is  immeasurable, 
especially  as  we  take  in  the  immensity  of  the  known 
universe.  As,  moreover,  we  know  and  can  only  con- 
ceive of  one  kind  of  originating  efficient,  that  of  will  of 
I)ersonality,  we  find  in  this,  in  infinite,  will  and  person- 
ality, an  intelligible  and  sufficient  explanation  of  the 
world,  in  its  existence  and  changes.  Any  other  hy- 
pothesis fails  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  problem. 
To  the  counter  assertion  that  effects  and  causes  are 
only  antecedents  and  consequents,  the  reply  is  that  we 
know  them,  in  ourselves,  as  different.  We  ourselves 
are  efficient  causes,  and  our  actions  and  their  results 
are  consequences  and  effects.  What  we  thus  know  in 
ourselves  we  transfer  to  other  personalities. 

(b)  Connected  with  this,  and  bringing  in  an  addi- 
tional  feature,    is   the   cosmological   argument.     This 


80  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  GOD. 

finds  the  woi'ld  of  be^^-inrnngs  and  clianges  not  a  chaos, 
but  a  cosmos,  an  orderly  arrangement,  rehitions  of 
parts  to  each  other,  of  i)arts  to  a  whole,  of  these  sev- 
eral wholes  to  unifying  principles— to  a  few,  or,  it  may 
be,  one  such  principle  by  which  all  is  pervaded.  The 
argument  is  thus,  not  only  from  change,  beginnings, 
but  of  order,  of  intelligent  arrangement,  needing  intel- 
ligence to  account  for  it.  Here,  also,  in  view  of  the 
extent  or  the  arrangement  and  of  the  variety  of  the 
materials,  is  the  demand  for  intelligence  of  infinite 
capacity. 

(c)  An  advance  upon  this,  in  degree  if  not  in  kind, 
is  the  teleological — that  which  finds  not  only  changes 
and  order,  as  in  the  two  preceding,  but  also  such  order 
and  arrangement  as  conduce  to  the  attainment  of  cer- 
tain ends  or  purposes.  Sometimes,  for  instance,  struc- 
tures are  so  related,  in  their  respective  parts,  to  a 
unified  whole  ;  and  these  wholes  to  others,  as  to  their 
surroundings  and  necessities  of  perpetuation,  of  exist- 
ence and  enjoyment,  that  jmrpose  is  manifested  in 
them.  As  they  are,  and  as  they  are  related,  they 
manifestly  have  ends  in  view.  There  is  purx:)ose  indi- 
cated in  their  existence.  The  eye  is  for  seeing,  the  ear 
for  hearing,  as  vdth  numberless  cases  of  similar  char- 
acter. Such  purpose  is  manifest,  supposing  to  every 
such  structure  a  distinct  origin,  and  perj)etuated  with- 
out change  from  the  first  creation.  But  it  is  no  less 
manifest,  supposing  it  the  effect  of  numberless  changes 
by  which  these  forms  of  structure  gradually  passed 
into  others.     The  fact,  whether  by  a  leap  or  by  a  long 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF  GOD.  81 

process  of  ]3rei)aration,  is  the  same  fact  ;  and  in  it  are 
the  same  indications  of  purpose.  It  rather,  indeed, 
increases  the  evidence  of  wisdom,  and  skill,  and  pur- 
pose in  the  complicated  and  progressive  stages  through 
v^^hich  the  result  is  reached.  Evolution  demands  in- 
volution, the  plan  and  purpose  under  which  it  begins 
and  goes  on  to  its  result.  In  it,  as  in  the  creation  of 
the  world,  as  it  actually  is,  are  marks  of  design,  pur- 
pose, teleology.  An  intelligence  of  infinite  capacity,  a 
will  of  infinite  resources  is  needed  for  its  realization. 
Of  course,  indications  in  this  cosmos  of  wisdom,  of 
goodness,  increase  the  evidence  as  to  the  perfection  of 
its  Author  ;  moral,  as  well  as  intellectual  perfection. 
Objection  to  this  or  that  23articular,  as  involving  pain 
and  sufl:ering,  may  be  urged.  But  even  in  many  of 
these  there  is  revelation  of  higher  benefit ;  and  the 
general  i^urpose  and  predominant  effect  of  good  may 
be  easily  recognized.* 

{d)  To  this  has  been  added  what  has  been  called  the 
anthropological :  the  indications,  as  in  the  others,  of 

*  Difficulties  have  been  made,  in  connection  with  this  argument  of 
design  or  purpose,  in  the  phenomena  of  nature.  One  has  been  specially 
insisted  upon  :  that  the  idea  of  design  goes  with  us  in  the  investigation  ; 
consequently  we  do  not  find  it  in  the  phenomena.  But  this  is  to  confound 
two  things  perfectly  distinct.  The  idea  of  design  in  its  origin  is,  with 
man,  a  designing  being.  If  he  were  not  so  he  could  never  be  able  to 
find  or  even  comprehend  it.  This  idea,  which  he  gets  in  the  first 
movements  of  his  own  mind,  lie  takes  wuth  him  into  the  investigation 
of  phenomena  ;  and  in  such  phenomena  recognizes  its  existence  and 
presence.  I,  as  a  designing,  purposing  being,  recognize  such  design 
and  purpose,  telcological  results  made  manifest  in  things  around  me. 


82  THE   DOCTRINE   OF   GOD 

beginnings,  of  order,  of  x)urpose  ;  but  all  these  lieiglit- 
ened  and  increased  in  the  phenomena  of  human  nature, 
as  related,  in  its  organic  being,  to  the  world  and  its 
surroundings  ;  as,  in  its  rational,  moral,  and  spiritual 
constitution,  related  to  a  moral  and  spiritual  order, 
and  to  its  Divine  Author.  Here  we  have  personality 
in  its  capacities  of  being  and  of  doing  ;  and  in  such 
personality  is  proof  of  that  of  its  Author.  The  fact 
reveals  the  nature  of  its  cause.  Personal  being  is  the 
only  adequate,  as  a  cause,  to  i)ersonal  being.  Man, 
created  in  the  image  of  God,  is  thus  a  revelation  of  his 
personal  Creator. 

{e)  With  all  these  comes  in,  and  upon  its  own  specific 
evidence,  that  of  revelation,  with  its  miraculous  attesta- 
tion. God,  in  that  revelation,  not  only  makes  known 
His  will,  but  gives  increased  and  co-operative  proof  of 
His  existing  presence,  and  power,  and  perfection. 
Specially  is  this  the  case  in  His  dealings  with  His  an- 
cient people  ;  in  His  interpositions  for  their  benefit  or 
correction.  Peculiarly  is  this  proof  afforded  in  His 
predicted  j)urposes,  as  in  the  progress  of  ages  they 
have  been  verified.  God,  as  working  and  speaking, 
and  in  these  special  modes,  manifests  alike  His  exist- 
ence and  His  perfection.  Of  course,  not  so  much  from 
j)articular  texts  as  from  facts  of  His  dealing  are  to  be 
found  God's  manifestations  of  Himself,  not  only  to 
His  people,  but  to  all  men  and  in  all  coming  ages. 

How  I  first  got  that  idea  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  rational  conviction 
of  its  presence  and  reaUty.  For  full  investigation  of  this  subject,  see 
Jackson's  prize  essay,  "  Philosophy  of  Natural  Theology." 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF  GOD.  83 

These  different  i:)roofs  are  usually  thought  of  as 
identical.  There  is  really  in  them  the  element  of  prog- 
ress. In  each  there  is  an  advance  upon  those  preced- 
ing. In  that  of  contingency,  for  instance,  is  the  truth 
of  an  originating  Intelligence  and  Power,  and  this  all 
pervasive.  In  the  cosmological  are  these  forces  of  in- 
telligence and  power  in  an  orderly  manner,  and  in 
m'anifold  operation.  In  the  teleological  is,  further, 
the  purpose  and  design,  additional,  over  all  and  in  all, 
to  the  attainment  of  certain  results,  manifestive  of  in- 
finite knowledge,  wisdom,  and  benevolence.  Last  of 
all,  in  the  anthropological  is  found  the  image  of  the 
Divine  Original,  rationally  necessitating  the  existence 
of  that  Original.  And,  corroborative  of  all,  and  with 
additional  evidence,  is  that  of  specific  revelation. 

Unbelief  as  to  the  Divine  Existence. 

Contrasted  with  this  truth  of  God,  accepted  and 
verified  in  the  forms  indicated,  is  that  first  and  most 
sliari)ly  of  atheism.  This,  in  its  form  of  statement,  is 
negative  ;  and  the  adaot  of  Eph.  2  :  12  and  of  Ps.  53  : 1 
were  rather  the  godless,  the  practical,  than  the  theo- 
retic or  dogmatic  atheists.  It  is  sometimes  asserted 
that  atheism  is  impossible,  usually  upon  the  assumed 
postulate  that  human  nature,  mediately  or  immediate- 
ly, knows  God  and  cannot  help  knowing  Him.  Even, 
however,  upon  this  postulate,  is  to  be  borne  in  mind 
the  capacity  in  human  nature  of  resisting  and  over- 
coming natural  convictions,  of  obscuring  rational  intui- 
tions.    And,  whether  it  be  acce];)ted  or  not,  over  against 


84  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  GOD. 

this  assertion  is  tlie  undoubted  historical  fact  that  such 
belief  has  been  explicitly  avowed— dogmatic  atheism. 
This,  as  the  affirmation  of  a  negative,  can  only  be  es- 
tablished by  an  exhaustive  analysis  of  the  contents  of 
the  universe  ;  is,  rationally,  a  hopeless  undertaking. 
The  affirmation  of  atheism  demands  the  capacity  of 
Omniscience,  Avhich  imx)lies  God.  It  is  sufficient,  for 
our  2^nrpose,  simply  to  indicate  what  may  be  regarded 
as  the  forms  of  atheism. 

{a)  The  dogmatic,  that  which  positively  affirms  it. 

(5)  The  s^Deculative,  which  fails  to  find  proof  of  its 
opposite. 

(c)  The  practical,  which,  perhaps  accei)ting  it,  the 
truth  of  God,  acts  and  lives  as  if  it  were  false. 

With  this  subject  of  atheism  is  usually  connected 
that  of  pantheism,  the  belief  or  form  of  philosophy 
which  identifies  the  Divine  and  cosmical  existence. 
That  of  Spinoza,  of  one  substance,  with  its  two  princi- 
ples, or  attributes  of  thought  and  extension,  variously 
modified,  is  that  which  is  best  known.  Later  systems 
in  Germany  have  involved  additional  modifications. 
Perhaps  the  simplest  distinction  in  this  matter  is  that 
of  materialistic  and  idealistic  pantheism.  With  the 
former,  matter  in  its  simplest  element  is  the  point  of 
departure.  Deity,  intelligence,  Divine  and  human 
alike,  as  everything  intermediate,  is  an  evolution  from 
matter  in  its  simplest  principle  ;  Deity,  however,  in 
some  manner  present  wath  matter  in  its  initiative  as  in 
its  continuative  i')otentialities.  With  the  latter,  taking 
mind  as  the  x^oint  of  departure,  the  world  is  an  emana- 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF  GOD.  85 

tioii  of  Deity  ;  at  the  same  time  is  in  Deity,  as  Deity 
is  in  it.  Practically,  with  the  average  man,  the  first 
of  these  is  atheism,  and  the  last  frequently  runs  into 
it.  The  results  of  both  are  fatalistic,  logically  destruc- 
tive of  personality  ;  consequently  of  accountability,  as 
of  the  springs  of  human  exertion  and  asj^iration. 

Allied  to  these  forms  of  speculative  and  practical 
unbelief,  as  to  the  Divine  existence  and  perfection,  are 
two  others  of  comparatively  modern  origin  and  preva- 
lence— those  of  positivism  and  agnosticism.  The  ]3rin- 
ciple  of  the  former,  positivism,  is  that  of  jDositive  or 
real  knowledge  as  confined  to  the  domain  of  j)hysical 
science,  or  facts  verifiable  by  the  senses.  Ethics,  psy- 
chology, and  theology  are  thus  ruled  out,  as  not  author- 
ized to  make  affirmations  of  a  scientific  or  positive 
character.  The  i^rogress  of  the  race  has  been,  first, 
the  theological,  in  its  successive  stages  of  fetichism, 
polytheism,  monotheism  ;  the  metaphysical,  or  stage  of 
doubt ;  the  positive,  that  of  certified  knowledge.  Re- 
ligion is  a  matter  of  feeling.  The  object  to  which  it  is 
directed  cannot  be  proved  to  exist.  The  later  course 
of  Comte  was  strangely  inconsistent  with  some  of  these 
features  of  his  system.  But,  to  all  intents  and  pur- 
poses, positivism  is  practical  atheism. 

Agnosticism,  in  contrast  with  this,  affirms  the  neces- 
sity of  a  sufficient  ground  for  the  existence  of  the 
universe,  an  originating  efficient  ;  but  it  denies  that 
affirmation  can  be  made  as  to  attributes  or  modes  of 
operation.  We  thus  know  the  world,  and,  in  our 
knowledge  of  this  world,  know  necessarily  of  its  Au- 


86  THE   DOCTRINE  OF  GOD. 

thor.  But  as  to  His  character,  and  dealings,  and  rela- 
tions to  men,  and  of  His  princi^^les  of  operation,  we 
are  ignorant.  The  altar,  if  erected,  is  to  the  unknown 
God. 

Two  other  terms  need  brief  explication. 

Deism,  simple  in  its  etymology,  but  in  its  usage  bet- 
ter described  by  the  word  naturalism  ;  the  equivalent, 
also,  of  wliat  is  usually  spoken  of  as  rationalism.  It 
accepts  the  truth  of  a  God  as  known  in  nature  and  as 
Creator  ;  but  it  excludes  the  truth  of  His  continued 
personal  action,  of  providential  control,  and  presence, 
and  interj^osition  in  nature.  All  forces  and  agencies, 
as  originally  set  in  operation,  unvaryingly  continue, 
are  natural. 

Theism,  the  same  word  in  its  Greek  form,  has  a 
much  more  expanded  significance.  It  is  often  the 
equivalent  of  deism  ;  so,  again,  of  agnosticism  ;  at  the 
same  time,  by  others  is  applied  to  Christianity.  Any 
form  of  belief  in  this  modern  usage,  accepting  the  idea 
or  truth  of  God,  is  theism.  It  needs,  therefore,  to  be 
used  carefully  and  with  discrimination.  The  speaker 
may  mean  Christianity  ;  the  hearer  may  understand  it 
as  naturalism  or  agnosticism. 

Harris's  "  Philosophical  Basis  of  Theism." 
Hodge,  Charles,  "  Theology,"  1  vol. 
Hetherington's  "  Apologetics." 

Steenstra's  "  The  Being  of  God  as  Unity  and  Trinit)\" 
"  Discourse  Concerning  the  Being  and  Attributes  of  God,"  by  Samuel 
Clarke. 
Dorner's  "  Tlieology." 


CHAPTER  YIII. 

THE   DIVINE   ATTRIBUTES. 

Grounds  of  conccptjon  as  to  these.— The  two  features  of  Scriptural 
teaching. — Attributes  of  Personality. — Divisions  of  them. — Divine 
Unity,  Spiritualitj^,  Eternity,  Omnipotence,  Omniscience,  Omni- 
presence, Holiness,  Truth,  Justice,  Wisdom  and  Love,  or  Goodness. 

In  any  endeayor  to  apprehend  or  get  ideas  of  the 
perfections  of  God,  Ave  find  our  limit  in  onr  own  capaci- 
ties. These,  while  helloing  its,  at  the  same  time  do 
not,  in  their  results,  fully  give  what  we  are  seeking. 
They  are,  however,  onr  highest  and  fullest  source  of 
comprehension  and  of  information  ;  analogically  enable 
us  to  understand  the  Divine  character  and  perfections. 
We  get  our  ideas  of  those  perfections  as  they  are  out- 
wardly manifested  in  nature.  We  are  told  of  them  in 
the  revelations  of  Scripture.  And,  from  nature  within, 
from  our  own  intellectual,  moral,  and  spiritual  per- 
sonalities, evidence  corroborative  and  elucidative  is 
afforded.  We  know  ourselves  as  personalities,  intelli- 
gent, rational,  volitional ;  cai:>able  of  selecting  ends, 
adapting  means  to  their  attainment ;  knowing  them  as 
morally  good  and  evil.  Man  is  thus  higher  than  the 
mere  vital,  physical,  or  instinctive  capacity.  All  these 
he  includes  in  himself  ;  and  he  is,  additionally,  much 
more  and  higher.     We  take  him,  the  highest  of  all 


88  THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

earthly  creatures  ;  and  take  that  in  him  which  olevates 
him  above  these,  as  affording  the  clearest  anrl  fullest 
evidence  of  the  perfections  of  his  Divine  Author.  In 
so  doing,  we  endeavor  to  remove  all  human  mperfec- 
tions,  to  heighten  all  human  excellence  ;  in  this  man- 
ner, to  get  an  intelligible  and  worthy,  although  it  may 
be  an  inadequate  knowledge,  of  the  Divine  Being  and 
character.  Anthropomorphisms,  however  imperfect  or 
liable  to  perversion,  are  less  so  than  any  other.  The 
alternative,  too,  is  to  something  lower.  We  cannot 
avail  ourselves  of  angelomorphisms,  for  these,  when 
intelligible,  are  anthropomorphic.  Efforts  to  avoid 
this — in  other  words,  to  construe  the  world  and  its  Di- 
vine Author  under  the  morphisms  of  gravity,  affinity, 
vitality — are  at  the  bottom  of  much  of  the  scepticism 
of  our  day.  If  any  of  these  give  an  idea  of  God,  it 
will  be  that  of  a  being,  as  simply  an  immense,  unintel- 
ligent force,  ceaselessly  operating.  He,  or  it,  v/hile 
perhaps  dreaded,  cannot  be  an  object  of  love,  of  obedi- 
ence, or  devotion.  Instinctive,  vital,  affinitive,  or 
atomic  cannot  therefore  be  depended  upon  to  save  us 
from  the  dangers  of  anthropomorphism.  In  the 
human  personality  is  the  analogy,  the  image  of  the 
Divine. 

It  is  well  worthy  of  note  that  inspired  teaching 
seems  to  anticipate  and  guard  against  the  danger, 
alike,  of  anthropomorphic  and  abstract  conceptions. 
The  former,  unmingled,  would  tempt  to  only  human 
conceptions  of  Deity  ;  the  latter,  if  alone,  Avould  be 
unintelligible.     Its  declarations  at  times  speak  of  the 


THE   DIVINE   ATTRIBUTES.  81) 

Infinite,  the  Eternal,  the  Self-Existent,  the  Immutable. 
At  other  times  He  is  described  as  speaking  and  doing, 
as  i^leased  and  displeased,  as  grieved  or  gratified  in  the 
actions  of  His  creatures.  He  is  thus  God  in  the  infini- 
tude of  His  perfections  ;  that  perfection  including  His 
interest  and  presence,  and  dealings  with  all  of  His  de- 
pendent creatures. 

With  this  central  truth,  therefore,  of  personality,  we 
begin  in  our  efforts  to  see  His  attributes  or  perfections. 
The  Divine  Being  or  nature  we  may  say  is  the  sum  of 
these  perfections.  These  enable  us  to  know  His  work- 
ing, the  principles  controlling.  Various  divisions  of 
these  have  been  made  ;  such,  for  instance,  as  negative 
and  X30sitive — the  negative,  in  which  we  remove  all  im- 
perfections that  are  in  ourselves,  as  those  of  knowl- 
edge, in  Omniscience  ;  the  positive,  in  which  we  add 
such  qualities,  as  perfect  justice  and  goodness,  to  ours 
imperfect.  Further,  the  division  of  active  and  passive 
attributes,  justice  and  omnipotence  of  the  active,  eter- 
nity and  omnij^resence  of  the  passive.  Still  further  is 
the  division  of  the  natural  or  physical  and  the  moral ; 
the  latter  those  in  which  there  is  the  exercise  of  the 
Divine  will,  as,  for  instance,  justice  as  distinguished 
from  knowledge  or  power,  in  which  will  is  not  includ- 
ed. All  these  divisions  are  defective  ;  but  the  last  is 
the  simplest  and  least  liable  to  objection.  The  words 
physical  and  natural  have,  indeed,  in  later  usage,  be- 
come materialized  in  their  association.  It  is  difficult 
to  find  a  substitute.  Perhaps  dynamical  or  substantial 
might  be  taken. 


90  the  divine  attributes. 

Divine  Unity. 

Carrying,  therefore,  with  us,  in  our  examination  of 
each  of  these  attributes,  the  truth  of  i^ersonality,  we 
look  first  at  those  which  are  natural  as  distinguished 
from  moral ;  and  as  unifying  our  view  of  their  char- 
acter and  operation,  single  or  combined,  we  first  con- 
template the  truth  of  the  Divine  unity.  The  proof  of 
this  is  twofold  :  first,  in  the  idea  of  infinite  pei'fection, 
which  cannot  be  conceived  of  but  as  one.  Division  im- 
plies capacity  of  addition,  as  of  further  division,  and 
thus  voids  the  idea  of  infinitude.  So,  in  the  calling 
into  existence  of  the  world,  its  preservation  and  gov- 
ernment, unity  alone  meets  all  the  demands  of  the 
problem,  and  settles  it  without  complication.  It  is  to 
be  said  that  the  clear  recognition  of  the  Divine  person- 
ality is  usually  connected  with  that  of  the  unity.  In 
polytheistic  religions  there  is  aj^t  to  be  confusion  as  to 
both. 

The  scrij)tural  enunciation  of  this  truth  is  clear,  dis- 
tinct, and  emphatic.  It  was  the  one  point  in  which 
the  religion  of  Israel  was  Protestant  against  the  world 
—the  point  of  their  temptation  to  individual  and  na- 
tional apostasy — and,  therefore,  one  in  which  they  re- 
ceived full  instruction.  "  Hear,  O  Israel !  Jehovah 
our  God  is  one  Jehovah"  (Deut.  6:4).  "To us,"  says 
the  apostle,  "  there  is  one  God"  (1  Cor.  8  :  4,  6).  "I 
am  God,  and  there  is  none  else"  (Isa.  45  :  5,  21,  22). 
"  Thou  art  God  alone"  (Ps.  86  :  10).  To  these  may  be 
added  others,     See  especially  Deut.  4  :  35-39  ;  32  :  39, 


thp:  divine  attributes.  91 

Intimately  connected,  in  the  way  of  contrast,  with 
this  truth  of  the  Divine  unity,  is  that  of  the  existence 
and  prevalence  of  its  opx^osite,  polytheism,  many 
gods  ;  sometimes  that  of  a  monarchy,  with  one  supe- 
rior ;  sometimes  that  of  superior  and  inferior  classes  ; 
sometimes  if  not  exactly  equal,  yet  singly  exerting 
power  and  objects  of  dread  and  worship.  The  prob- 
lem has  been  its  origin.  The  apostle,  in  Rom.  1 :  19,  23, 
finds  it  in  neglect  and  perversion  of  divinely  given 
truths  and  evidences  as  to  the  true  God  in  the  begin- 
ning. This  accords  with  the  Old  Testament  in  its  his- 
torical dealing  with  it,  as  in  its  constant  reprobation  of 
it.  The  first  men  are  monotheists.  Enoch  walked 
with  God  ;  Noah's  loyalty  to  God  is  emphasized  ;  and 
Abraham  seems  to  have  been  called  in  his  own  life  wit- 
ness, as  in  the  existence  of  his  descendants,  to  perpetu- 
ate it  in  the  world,  as  to  protest  against  its  opposite. 

Accordant  with  this  is  the  fact  that,  in  the  religions  of 
the  world,  the  earliest  stages  are  the  purest ;  the  grosser 
forms  of  polytheism  come  later.  The  personification  of 
Divine  attributes  or  of  natural  powers  was  perhaps  the 
first  stage  ;  the  worship  of  the  attribute  or  power  thus 
personified  in  due  time  following  ;  the  deification  of 
human  poAvers,  or  humanity,  one  of  its  last  stages. 
However  begun,  it  rapidly  spread  ;  and  in  the  time  of 
Abraham  seems  to  have  reached  a  point  at  Avhich  a 
special  dispensation  was  needed  to  preserve  and  per- 
XJetuate  the  primitive  truth,  from  which  it  was  a  de- 
i:tarture.  It  is  further  to  be  said  of  polytheism  that 
while  it  sometimes  gave  so  niucli  prerogative  to  one  of 


92  THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

its  deities  that  it  bordered  on  monotheism,  in  another, 
it  so  identified  all  the  deities  with  the  powers  and 
operations  of  nature,  that  it  becomes  pantheism.  The 
gross  polytheism  of  the  multitude  was  the  pantheism 
of  philosophers.  At  different  stages  one  or  other  of 
these,  holding  in  solution  its  opposite,  oi^enly  predomi- 
nated ;  but  rarely,  if  ever,  rising  into  consistent  mono- 
theism. Historically  exhibited,  and  impressed  upon 
God' s  chosen  people  through  their  long  experience,  it 
became  to  them  a  permanent  possession  ;  and,  through 
them,  has  been  inherited  by  the  world.  The  effort  to 
evolve  monotheism  from  fetichism,  through  the  lower 
forms  of  polytheism,  and  from  these  through  the 
higher  forms  of  polytheism,  is  one  that  breaks  down 
at  every  stage  of  its  undertaking.* 

*  Perhaps,  as  striking  illustration  of  the  hopelessness  of  such  attempt, 
is  that  afforded, by  Dr.  Matheson  in  his  "Messages  of  the  Old  Relig- 
ions." Starting  with  the  assumption  of  fetichism — that  is,  religion,  an 
evolution  from  and  through  the  lower  up  to  the  highest — he  exhibits 
this  rising  progress.  The  oldest  religion — not  that  of  Adam  or  Abel, 
but  of  men  without  knowledge  or  idea  of  God — begins  in  its  process 
with  one  of  the  lowest  objects,  say,  a  stone  or  piece  of  wood,  this  hav- 
ing or  giving  to  man  the  consciously  changing  being,  the  idea  of  per- 
manence. Attaining  in  the  stone  this  idea  of  permanence,  he  manages 
to  transfer  it  to  himself  by  the  dream  experience.  As  he  finds  that  he 
continues  through  the  dreaming  and  waking  state  the  same  being,  so, 
like  the  stone,  he  is  immortal.  The  next  stage,  it  may  be,  is  the  spir- 
itualizing the  fetich,  the  stone,  by  carving  or  making  it  like  a  man. 
This  may  be  idolatry  ;  but,  according  to  the  author,  it  is  not  polythe- 
ism. "Polytheism,"  he  tells  us,  "is  impossible.  There  never  really 
existed  or  could  exist  a  time  in  which  the  mind  of  man  had  its  atten- 
tion simultaneously  fixed  upon  two  objects  of  worship."  Perhaps  not, 
or  upon  any  other  two  things.  But  how  as  to  different  times  ?  Poly- 
theism is  not  the  simultaneous  worship  of  different  deities,  but  of  these 
deities  at  different  times,  and  in  different  acts  of  devotion.  The  heroes 
of  Homer  did  not  worship  Zeus,  or  Neptune,  or  Apollo  in  the  same  time 


THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  93 

Spirituality  of  God. 

"  Unus  mirus,  et  verus  Dens"'  ("  the  true  God,  one 
and  living' ' )  is  the  opening  sentence  of  our  first  arti- 
cle. The  unity  and  living  personality  of  the  Divine 
Being  thus  stand  first,  in  ]3oint  of  contemplation,  in 
any  endeavor  to  know  or  exhibit  His  attributes  or  per- 
fections. This,  of  unity,  goes  with  us  in  all  that  fol- 
lows, and  enables  us  to  see  it  in  its  full  significance. 
"  The  Lord  our  God,"  a  sentence  to  be  read  on  the 
walls  of  many  Jewish  synagogues,  as  the  great  truth  of 
that  dispensation — "  the  Lord  our  God  is  one  Lord." 

With  this  truth  of  tlie  Divine  unity,  thus  to  be  taken 
with  us,  and  imi)lied  in  all  the  Divine  perfections,  is 
another — that  of  the  Divine  infinitude  :  God  as  in- 
finite, not  subject  to  limitation  in  space,  or  capacity  of 
being  or  of  action.  This  truth,  like  that  of  Divine 
unity,  goes  into  and  is  implied  in  the  exercise  of  all  His 
attributes.  It  is  thus,  to  use  the  idea  of  Dr.  Fairchild, 
not  so  much  a  Divine  attribute  as  the  mode  of  all  His 
attributes.  In  all  these,  natural  and  moral  alike,  in 
being,    and   counselling,    and    doing.    He    is    infinite. 

and  act,  as  do  not  those  now  who  worship  tlie  Virgin,  the  saint,  or  the 
ascended  Master,  This  theory  of  Henotheism,  the  worship  of  all  in  one,  or 
of  one  in  all,  is  a  generalization  and  abstraction  of  which  the  primitive 
man  was  hardjy  capable,  and  which  it  would  be  difficult,  if  not  impossi- 
ble, to  verify  in  the  phenomena  of  any  historical  religion.  If  we  could 
discover  a  colony  of  respectable  Ilenotheists,  there  might  be  some  hope 
of  tracing  it  to  its  origin.  So,  too,  as  to  all  those  hypotheses,  which 
derive  the  idea  of  God  from  dreams,  from  animism,  or  personification, 
or  self-deification,  or  fear,  or  self-deception.  They  do  not  rest,  to  use 
the  language  of  another,  upon  any  basis  of  established  truth — cannot 
be  verified. 


94  THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

Nothing  short  of  this  meets  the  necessity  of  human 
thought  in  the  question  of  an  originating  and  adequate 
Cause  of  the  finite  world  and  its  phenomena.  In  the 
infinitude  of  the  one  i^ersonal  God  is  the  solution,  and 
the  only  satisfactory  solution,  of  the  problem  of  the 
world,  as  of  its  beings  and  forms  of  existence. 

But  this  infinite  Being  is  especially  to  be  contem- 
plated as  an  infinite  Spirit.  As  Sjjirit,  He  is  not  re- 
lated to  space  or  to  any  point  or  duration  of  time  ;  not 
thus,  in  space,  not  included  in  any  extent  of  duration. 
As  Spirit,  He  is  intelligent,  moral,  and  free.  As  per- 
fect Spirit,  He  is  jDerfect  in  each  of  these  respects. 
Matter  and  animal  force  operate,  or  are  set  in  opera- 
tion, through  material  or  organic  forces  ;  spirit,  by  in- 
telligence and  will.  In  the  idea,  therefore,  of  perfect 
Spirit  is  that  of  perfect  intelligence,  perfection  of 
purpose  as  of  will,  in  counsel  and  in  action.  We,  as 
finite  spirits,  act  upon  each  other  and  the  world 
through  mediate  agencies  ;  God,  as  infinite,  perfect  Spir- 
it, immediately  and  perfectly.  "  God  is  a  spirit"  (Ex. 
20  :  4  ;  Col.  1  :  15  ;  1  Tim.  1 :  17  ;  Isa.  46  :  6  ;  John  4  :  24). 

From  this  there  are  several  scriptural  inferences. 

{a)  Worship  to  God  must  be  not  merely  outward, 
but  the  outward  must  be  the  movement  and  expression 
of  the  inward  "  in  spirit  and  in  truth." 

{b)  Such  worship  cannot  be  exclusively  localized. 
Where  the  human  spirit  really  worships,  the  Divine 
Spirit  is  present  to  accept  and  bless  it. 

(c)  As  Spirit,  He  cannot  be  represented  in  any  visible 
image  or  figure. 


THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  95 

{d)  These  representations,  as  imperfect,  lead  to 
wrong  and  degrading  ideas  of  His  personality,  eventu- 
ally to  polytheism,  and  are,  therefore,  forbidden. 
This  is  the  prohibition  of  the  second  commandment — 
the  sin  of  the  calves,  in.  tlie  wilderness,  and  that  of 
Jeroboam.  Aliab's  sin,  the  worshijiof  Baal,  in  oi)posi- 
tion  to  that  of  Jehovah,  was  more  daring,  a  violation 
of  the  first  commandment.  How  far  possible,  in 
Christian  worship,  is  one  of  the  problems  of  our  time. 

Eternity  of  God. 

This  is,  of  course,  involved  in  the  idea  of  infinite 
perfect  Being.  As  perfect  Spirit,  unrelated  in  exist- 
ence to  x^eriods  of  duration.  He  is  eternal.  The  eter- 
nity thus  spoken  of  is  absolute  both  as  to  the  past  and 
as  to  the  future.  We  predicate  eternal  life,  as  does 
Scripture,  of  beings  who  come  into  existence  ;  who 
begin  to  be,  but  to  whose  existence  there  is  no  ending. 
The  eternal  life  of  such  a  being  begins,  and  endlessly 
continues.  The  eternal  life  of  God  has  no  such  begin- 
ning ;  is  so  from  eternity  to  eternity.  "  He  is  the 
same."  In  the  perfection  of  that  eternal  and  immu- 
table existence  is  the  necessary  ground  of  that  of  the 
universe,  as  of  all  His  creatures. 

In  this  truth,  moreover,  of  the  eternity  of  the  in- 
finite j)erfect  Spirit,  is  that  of  His  immutability.  As 
His  years  have  no  beginning  nor  ending,  so  is  He  in 
the  unchangeableness  of  His  perfection.  As  His  pur- 
poses are  grounded  in  the  perfections  of  His  being,  so 
are  they  without  change  or  variation.     He  is,  thus, 


96  THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

self -existent,  has  the  ground  of  His  existence  in  Him- 
self and  x^i'ior  to  all  other  beings  and  things  ;  is  inde- 
pendent, nncontrolled  by  any  of  these  His  dependent 
creatures.  Passages  exhibiting  this  attribute  are  Isa. 
44  :  0  ;  41  :  4  :  "I  am  the  first  and  the  last,  and  beside 
Me  there  is  no  God."  "  I  am  Jehovah,  the  first  and 
the  last,  calling  the  generations  from  the  beginning." 
Ps.  90  ;  Heb.  1  :  10  :  "  Thou  Lord  in  the  beginning 
hast  laid  the  foundations  of  the  earth."  "  Thou  art 
the  same."  "  They  shall  change,  but  Thou  remain- 
est."  1  Tim.  6:16:  "  Who  only  hath  immortality." 
Rom.  1  :  20 :  "  His  eternal  power  and  Godhead." 
2  Pet.  3:8:  "  One  day  is  with  the  Lord  as  a  thou- 
sand years."  Heb.  6  :  17  :  "  The  immutability  of 
His  counsel."  Mai.  3:6:  "I,  Jehovah,  change  not." 
James  1  :  17  :  "  Without  variableness,  or  shadow  of 
turning."  Ps.  33  :  11  :  "  The  thoughts  of  His  heart 
are  to  all  generations."  Rom.  11  :  33-36  :  ^'  Of  Him, 
and  through  Him,  and  to  Him  are  all  things." 

Under  this  attribute  are  two  difficulties  needing  ex- 
amination. One  of  these  is  the  class  of  passages  in 
which  God  is  spoken  of  as  repenting,  as  grieved,  as 
changing  His  purposes.  These  are  to  be  regarded  as 
anthropomorphisms,  and  anthropopathisms,  in  which 
God,  speaking  after  the  manner  of  men,  and  describing 
His  actions,  like  those  of  men,  dictated  by  certain  affec- 
tions and  feelings.  These,  like  jjassages  which  speak  of 
God  as  with  human  organs,  as  with  hands,  or  an  arm,  or 
with  ears,  are  accommodations  to  human  conception, 
and  to  be  explained  in  the  light  of  those  preceding. 


THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  97 

So,  too,  as  to  one  of  the  words  used  to  describe  end- 
less~  duration,  d^,U'  and  aioov.  Their  significance,  it 
may  be  said,  is  the  duration  of  which  the  being,  or 
thing  spoken  of,  is  ca^Dable.  The  d^,i;^  or  aioov^  or  age, 
of  an  individual,  it  may  be,  is  sixty  or  eighty  years  ; 
that  of  a  generation  is  between  thirty  and  forty  ;  that 
of  the  race  is  longer,  that  of  the  planet  is  longer  still  ; 
that  of  God  with  no  beginning  nor  end.  The  connec- 
tion, therefore,  must,  and  usually  without  difficulty 
does  settle,  in  what  sense  it  is  to  be  taken.  Kofffxo^ 
it  has  been  said,  is  the  world  projected  in  space,  as 
aiGDv  is  this  world  projected  in  time — that  is,  world  in 
duration.  At  the  same  time,  as  apjDlied  to  God,  it 
may  be  eternity  absolute  ;  applied  to  men,  it  may  be 
eternity  relative  ;  with  beginning,  but  with  no  end. 

Omnipotence  of  God. — In  the  perfection  of  infinite 
Spirit  is  the  attribute  of  power.  This,  while  contem- 
plated in  its  results  and  operations  as  physical,  is  the 
exercise  of  moral  and  spiritual  j)erfection — the  out- 
going of  the  Divine  will.  Omnipotence  has  been  de- 
fined the  power  of  doing  all  things  possible,  or  what- 
ever God  wills.  Impossibilities  to  Almighty  Power 
are  contradictions.  ''  Such  contradictions,"  to  use  the 
language  of  Dr.  Sparrow,  "  may  relate  to  the  ol)ject  or 
the  agent.  An  object  may  imjjly  it  immediately  and 
openly,  or  conseqaentially  and  covertly.  That  a  thing 
should  be  and  not  be  is  an  example  of  the  first,  which, 
in  its  statement,  contradicts  itself.  That  a  thing 
should  be  in  two  places  at  the  same  time  is  an  exam- 
l^le  of  the  second,  the  covert  and  the  consequential. 


98  THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

Tljis  latter  may  be  resolved,  after  xn'oceeding  one  step, 
into  the  former.  So  as  to  the  agent.  An  action  im- 
plies contradiction  to  God,  as  an  Agent,  when  it  is  re- 
pugnant to  His  essential  x^erfections.  On  this  ground 
it  is  no  derogation  of  Him  to  say  that  He  cannot  cease 
to  exist,  or  want,  or  do  evil,  as  these  would  imply  that 
He  was  not  God.  "With  Him  all  things  are  possi- 
ble," and  yet  "  He  cannot  look  upon  iniquity  but  with 
abhorrence."  His  omnipotence  is  that  of  rational  and 
moral  perfection  ;  of  course  in  the  operation  of  natu- 
ral forces  and  laws  as  of  special  and  sux)ernatural  in- 
terposition. 

This  attribute  is  exhibited  in  Scripture  figuratively 
and  literally.  "  By  the  word  of  Jehovah  were  the 
heavens  made,  and  all  the  host  of  them  by  the  breath 
of  His  mouth"  (Ps.  33  :  6,  9).  "  The  hand  of  Jehovah 
is  not  shortened"  (Isa.  59  : 1).  "  Our  God  is  in  heav- 
en :  He  doeth  whatsoever  He  will  "  (Ps.  115  :  3).  "  Call- 
ing things  that  are  not  as  things  that  are"  (Rom.  4  :  17). 
"  Thou  hast  made  the  heaven  and  earth  by  Thy  j^ower 
and  outstretched  arm"  (Jer.  32  :  17).  "  By  Thy  will 
Thou  hast  created  all  things' '  (Rev.  4:11;  Job  38). 

Omniscience  of  God. — This,  as  the  attributes  al- 
ready mentioned,  is  included  in  the  idea  of  perfect 
Spirit,  infinite  j^ersonality.  Spirit,  as  Spirit,  is  intelli- 
gent ;  ijerfect  Spirit  is  all  knowing,  is  omniscient. 
The  knowledge  thus  p)redicated  as  Divine  is  analogous 
in  certain  respects  to  that  wliich  is  human  ;  and  yet  in 
others  transcends  all  human  comparison  or  comprehen- 
sion.    Human  knowledge  is  of  the  present   and  the 


THE  DIVINE   ATTRIBUTES.  99 

past,  but  of  both  imperfectly.  The  future  can  only  be 
conjectured  ;  and  of  its  real  connection  with  the  pres- 
ent and  the  past  we  are  profoundly  ignorant.  Om- 
niscience includes  all  these,  and  perfectly.  We  know 
them  only  as  under  temporal  conditions  ;  as  known  in 
the  jDresent,  as  remembered  from  the  past,  or  as  antici- 
pated for  the  future.  To  omniscience — from  eternity 
to  eternity — they  are  known  and  fully  comprehended. 
"  From  the  beginning  of  the  world,  known  unto  God 
are  all  His  works"  (Acts  15  :  18).  Transcending,  as  it 
does,  the  capacity  of  human  thought  to  its  comprehen- 
sion, it  is  a  necessity  of  such  thought,  in  this  truth  of 
spiritual  perfection. 

As  this  truth  is  of  constant  practical  interest,  it  is 
frequent  in  scriptural  affirmation.  In  the  perfection 
of  His  knowledge  God  comprehends  Himself,  and  in 
all  the  perfections  of  His  being.  Finite  spirits  fail  to 
know  themselves,  fail  and  fall  short  at  the  highest  in 
their  knowledge  of  God.  He  knows  both — Himself,  in 
His  perfection  ;  man,  in  his  imperfection.  In  His 
knowledge  are  included  all  beings  and  all  things, 
their  powers  and  operations,  their  results  in  human 
action  ;  in  the  consequences  of  such  action,'  in  the  pos- 
sibilities and  probabilities  of  human  volition.  "  To 
the  eye  of  Him  all  things  are  naked  and  ox^ened"  (Heb. 
4  :  13).  "  He  clothes  the  lilies,  upholds  the  sparrows  ; 
knows  man's  necessities  of  food  and  raiment ;  tries  the 
reins  and  the  heart  of  men  ;  knows  their  thoughts." 
"  His  eyes  are  over  the  righteous,  and  His  ear  open  to 
their  cry,  and  His  face  is  against  them  that  do  evil" 


100  THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

(Matt.  6  :  26-32  ;  Jer.  11 :  18-20  ;  Ps.  94  :  9, 10,  11  ;  139  ; 
1  Pet.  3  :  12). 

Connected  with  this  attribute,  in  its  exercise,  have 
arisen  certain  speculative  difficulties.  One  of  these  is 
as  to  the  mode  of  such  exercise,  whether,  in  it,  is  in- 
volved the  element  of  succession.  Secondly,  as  to  the 
possibilities  of  Divine  knowledge,  extending  to  results 
contingent  upon  human  action  ;  and,  therefore,  some- 
times not  actually  taking  place.  And,  last,  as  to  the 
relation  of  Divine  knowledge  and  foreordination  to 
human  freedom  and  accountability.  We  take  them  in, 
the  order  presented.  As  to  the  first,  the  mode  of  the 
Divine  knowledge,  the  reply  is  that  it  transcends  all 
finite  comprehension.  Finite  human  knowledge,  as 
we  have  seen,  is  related  to  the  j)ast,  the  present,  and 
the  future,  remembrance,  experience,  anticipation  ; 
the  element  of  succession,  from  one  of  them  to  the 
other.  We  not  only  thus  know,  under  the  limitations 
of  time,  but,  in  our  thoughts  and  forms  of  expression 
as  to  Divine  knowledge,  and  only  as  making  it  com- 
prehensible, we  use  the  same  terms.  At  the  same 
time,  in  perfect  knowledge,  such  limitation  is  exclud- 
ed. That  knowledge,  however,  thus  from  eternity  to 
eternity,  is  no  less  through,  and  in  all  time,  ever  cog- 
nizant, and  of  everything.  It  includes  things  as  they 
are  contemplated,  and  as  they  actually  are  ;  as  they 
take  place,  and  as  related  to  their  agents,  their  accom- 
paniments, and  their  consequences. 

So,  too,  as  to  the  question  of  knowledge,  with  refer- 
ence to  events  contemplated,  that  do  not  actually  take 


THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  101 

place.  The  incident  of  David  at  Keilah  (1  Sam.  23  :  11, 
12),  and  of  St.  Paul  in  the  shipwreck  (Acts  27  :  22, 
31),  are  illustrations.  The  reply  is  simi)le.  Perfect 
knowledge  comprehends  not  only  actual  results,  events, 
and  forms  of  action,  but  the  results  of  different  modes 
of  proposed  action.  Human  cax)acity  is  often  able 
thus  to  foresee  ;  much  more  that  which  is  Divine. 

The  only  difficulty  in  this  last,  however,  is  involved 
in  the  third — that  they  are  foreknown,  and  therefore 
absolutely,  unconditionally  foreordained.  Foreknowl- 
edge, in  such  case,  is  made  the  equivalent  of  foreordi- 
nation,  and  this  as  unconditional.  What  is  foreknown, 
it  is  argued,  must  take  place,  and  therefore  cannot  be 
free.  But  foreknowledge,  if  perfect,  as  must  be  that 
of  Omniscience,  foreknows  the  action  as  that  of  a 
free  action  ;  any  ordination  is  in  view  of  that  feature 
in  it  as  of  all  others.  Foreknowledge  is  not  the  ground 
of  the  act.  The  act,  contemplated  and  known  as  a  free 
act,  is  the  ground  of  the  foreknowledge.  The  uncon- 
ditional is  in  the  world  of  physical  and  mechanical 
forces  and  operations  ;  the  conditional  always  in  that 
of  moral  and  spiritual,  and,  therefore,  accountable 
agency. 

Election"  atstd  FoREOKDiisrATioN. 

Under  this  attribute  of  perfect  Divine  knowledge 
usually  comes  up  the  question  of  election  and  foreordi- 
nation.  As  in  the  domain  of  the  Infinite,  the  subject 
has  its  difficulties.  These  have  been  greatly  compli- 
cated in  the  manner  and  spirit  in  which  the  controversy 


102  THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

in  regard  to  them  has  gone  on.  Two  classes  of  those 
difficulties  need  to  be  considered — those  of  a  philo- 
sophical and  those  of  a  scriptural  character.  The  phil- 
osophical are  involved  in  the  effort  to  construe  the 
idea  of  perfect  eternal  knowledge  with  those  of  fore, 
and  present,  and  after  ;  as  also  of  any  decree  of  elec- 
tion or  foreordination,  having  no  regard  to  the  actions 
or  character  of  the  individuals  or  classes  thus  decreed. 
If,  however,  the  Divine  knowledge  be  eternally  per- 
fect, it  must  include  everything,  all  action  and  all  char- 
acter. And  individuals  must  be  contemplated,  and  as 
they  really  are,  as  the  objects  of  Divine  determination. 
The  scriptural  difficulties  have  largely  risen  from 
the  failure  to  note  the  variations  of  meaning  in  the 
words  elect,  predestinate,  etc.  Sometimes,  for  instance, 
they  describe  an  outward  condition  of  reception  of  Di- 
vine blessing.  Sometimes  the  inward  state  of  those 
morally  responding  to  these  facts  of  their  condition. 
In  the  first  of  these  senses  all  Israel  was  the  elect.  In 
the  second,  it  was  really  only  the  obedient,  loyal  j^or- 
tion  to  Jehovah.  The  election  in  both  cases  was  to 
present  blessing  ;  to  its  enjoyment  and  improvement ; 
to  higher  blessing  as  the  result  of  that  improvement  ; 
to  the  duty  of  communicating  those  blessings  to  others. 
Just  as  was  the  individual  response  at  any  one  of  these 
stages,  so  was  the  election  made  effectual.  When  that 
response  was  wanting,  the  election  as  to  inward  bless- 
ing was  made  void.  While  of  Divine  grace  at  every 
such  stage,  in  its  origination  as  in  its  final  heavenly 
result,  it  was  only  in  the  response  of  human  faith  that 


THE   DIVINE   ATTRIBUTES.  103 

Bucli  grace  became  effectual.  It  is  of  faith  that  it  may 
be  by  grace.  It  is  by  grace  that  may  be  of  or  through 
faith. 

Omnipresence. — This  follows  from  the  last  two  at- 
tributes, omniscience  and  omnipotence,  the  power  of 
knowing  and  acting  everywhere  ;  God  present,  in  His 
power  and  knowledge,  everywhere.  The  definition 
has  been  suggested,  "  the  presence  of  all  things  to 
Grod."  This,  while  intended  to  keep  clear  of  mate- 
rialistic concei)tions,  at  the  same  time  does  not  fully 
express  the  idea  intended — that  of  the  essential  as  well 
as  effective  presence  of  God  in  all  things  and  in  all 
places.  In  one  as23ect  of  His  being  God  is  transcen- 
dent ;  transcends  the  universe  of  His  creatures  as  He 
does  their  capacity  of  comprehension  ;  the  Holy  One, 
separate  and  distinct  from  all  finite  beings  and  things. 
In  another,  He  is  immanent — distinct  from  and  j)resent 
in  every  movement  and  to  every  creature  in  His  domin- 
ions. While  there  has  been  a  tendency  to  run  this 
truth  into  pantheism,  so  as  to  identify  God  and  the 
world,  yet  this  is  not  its  necessity.  It  is  the  distinct- 
ness of  existence,  and  yet,  in  that  distinctness,  the 
ever-abiding  and  everywhere  j)ervading  presence  of 
that  Spirit,  in  its  perfection  of  knowing  and  of  acting. 
Special  manifestations  of  that  presence  may  be  made, 
and  are  scripturally  described  ;  but  every  such  special 
manifestation  is  only  the  fuller  revelation  of  the  ever- 
present  and  abiding  reality.  "Do  not  I  fill  heaven 
and  earth  ?  saith  Jehovah"  (Jer.  23  :  24).  "  Our  God  is 
in  the  heavens"  (Ps.  115:3).     "He  dwelleth  not  in 


104  THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

temples  made  with  hands' '  (Acts  17  :  24  ;  see  also  Isa. 
66  :  1  ;  John  14  :  23  ;  1  Kings  8  :  27). 

The  sacramental  issue  of  controversy,  it  is  to  be  re- 
membered, is  not  as  to  the  presence  of  our  Lord's 
Deity,  but  that  of  His  body,  His  bodily  humanity.  He, 
as  God,  is  present  in  the  sacrament,  as  He  is  every- 
where. He,  as  God  Man,  is  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
Father,  Body,  an  outlined  object,  in  becoming  ubiqui- 
tous gets  away  from  that  which  is  the  essential  attribute 
of  body,  becomes  omnipresent,  is  deified. 

MoKAL  Attributes. — The  transition,  here,  from 
those  already  indicated,  will  be  easily  recognized.  In 
the  infinitude  of  being,  of  permanence,  of  power,  of 
knowledge,  and  of  presence,  there  is  no  necessary  im- 
X)lication  of  moral  relations  or  issues.  Unconsciously, 
indeed,  we  carry  with  us  in  our  idea  of  these  attributes 
that  of  their  moral  exercise  ;  and  it  may  be  said  that 
in  the  truth  of  infinite  perfection,  as  ^personality,  they 
are  included.  At  the  same  time,  they  may  and  should 
be  distinguished— the  Divine  attributes  which  are  im- 
plied in  the  idea  of  moral  and  spiritual  perfection. 
They  are  sometimes  spoken  of  as  attributes  of  the  Di- 
vine will — as  its  forms  of  exertion  and  outworking,  in 
contrast  to  those  of  simple  power  or  intelligence  ;  as 
expressions,  in  such  exercise,  of  the  Divine  will  and 
character. 

Without  making  distinct  and  separate  sections  in 
the  examination  of  these,  we  may  briefly  notice 
their  nature  and  connection.  They  are  those  of  holi- 
ness, truth,  justice,   wisdom,   and   love   or  goodness. 


THE   DIVINE   ATTRIBUTES.  105 

The  first  of  these — holiness — really  including  some  of 
the  others  in  its  significance,  is  that  of  moral  and  spir- 
itual excellence.  This  idea  of  holiness,  as  related  to 
finite  creatures,  is  that  of  consecration,  sexoarateness 
from  everything  impure  or  evil,  separation,  consecra- 
tion to  that  which  is  excellent,  to  Him  who  is  excel- 
lent, the  Holy  One.  He,  the  Holy  One,  is  infinitely 
separated  from  and  against  all  evil  and  imj)erfec- 
tion.  He  is  thus  set  apart  from,  consecrated  above  all 
imperfect  beings  and  things,  in  the  excellence  of  His 
spiritual  perfection.  This  word  holy  is  often  thought 
of  only  in  its  negative  aspect — that  of  freedom  from  its 
opposite.  Its  positive  thus  fails  of  recognition.  Both 
need  to  be  kex^t  in  view.  Holy  (Saxon,  liallg,  hal)^ 
hale,  healthy,  soundness,  wholeness,  is  the  significance 
of  the  word  physically,  as  to  the  bodily  organism. 
Bodily  haleness,  healthiness,  wholeness,  holiness  of 
organic  life,  is  that,  negatively,  of  freedom  from  all 
taint  of  organic  disease  and  imperfection  ;  positively 
that  of  vigorous  and  active  cax3acity.  So,  too,  wnth 
that  which  is  spiritual.  As  bringing  out  this  truth  of 
holiness  in  its  x^ositive  aspect,  it  is  sometimes  used  in 
Scripture  as  the  equivalent  of  the  Divine  majesty  (Isa. 
6  :  3),  as  in  the  Ax')0calyx3se,  the  whiteness,  not  only 
absence  of  all  tarnish  and  imx^urity,  but  the  shining- 
white  resplendence  of  the  Divine  glory  and  majesty. 
See  Matt.  17  :  2  ;  Mark  9:3;  Rev.  1  :  14,  where  it  is 
not  only  x^urity,  innocence,  but  glorious  excellence. 

Old  Testament  revelation  brings  out  this  truth  of  the 
Divine  character  :  "  I,  the  Lord  thy  God,  am  holy' '  (Lev. 


106  THE   DIVINE   ATTRII5UTi:S. 

19  :  2).  He  was  thus  lioly  in  His  purity  and  separateness 
from  all  the  pollutions  and  abominations  of  heathen 
worship,  and  thek  impure  objects  of  worship,  in  His  su- 
preme deity  ;  above  them  and  in  His  holiness  opposed 
to  them,  as  the  only  proper  object  of  reverence  and 
imitation.  "Be  ye  holy"  is  the  accordant  precept  of 
the  New  Testament,  quoted  from  the  Old  Testament. 
"For  I  am  holy"  (1  Pet.  1:14,  16).  "This  is  the 
will  of  God,  your  holiness"  (1  Thess.  4:3).  "  With 
out  holiness  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord"  (Heb.  12  :  14). 
Tlie  finite  holiness  thus  insisted  upon  finds  its  object  in 
Him  who  is  x^erfectly  holy  ;  free  from  all  evil  and  possi- 
bility of  evil,  full  of  all  moral  and  si:)iritual  excellence. 
But  this  supreme  and  perfect  excellence,  thus  con- 
templated in  its  wholeness,  negative  and  positive,  has 
its  forms  of  manifestation.  One  of  these  is  that  of 
truth.  This  we  find  scripturally  as  one  of  the  Divine 
attributes.  The  truth  of  God,  thus  spoken  of,  has  ref- 
erence, first,  to  the  truth  and  reality  of  His  existence 
absolutely  ;  as  also  relatively,  in  the  way  of  opposi- 
tion, to  all  other  supposed  or  affirmed  deities,  and  ob- 
jects of  worshij)  or  of  reverence.  He  is  the  true  God, 
the  only  God  as  opposed  to  all  called  or  worshipped  as 
gods.  He  is,  moreover,  the  true  God  in  that  He  is  the 
God  of  truth.  All  His  words  are  true.  He  is  true  in 
all  His  manifestations,  in  word  and  act,  is  what  those 
manifestations  x^rofess  and  affirm.  The  truth  of  things 
is  the  exact  correspondence  of  them  with  what  they 
affirm  or  are  rejDresented  to  be.  God  is  thus  true  in  all 
His  revelations  of  Himself  ;  His  declarations  of  prom- 


THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  1U7 

ise  and  of  warning  ;  His  words  as  to  the  acts  and  char- 
acter of  His  creatures.  Herein  is  the  ground  of  reli- 
ance to  finite  and  human  agents.  "  God  is  faithful" 
(1  Cor.  10  :  18),  reliable,  to  be  trusted,  without  reserva- 
tion or  hesitation,  because  He  is  true.  "  Thy  word  is 
truth"  (John  17  :  17).  "  The  judgments  of  Jehovah  are 
true"  (Ps.  19  :  9).  "  In  faithfulness  hast  Thou  afflicted 
me"  (Ps.  119  :  75).  "  The  word  of  the  Lord  is  faithful, 
and  everything  He  does  is  truth"  (Ps.  33  :  4  ;  1  Cor. 
1:9.) 

Close  akin  to  this  is  the  attribute  of  righteousness  or 
justice — the  Divine  i^erfection,  working  in  and  for 
righteousness  as  to  all  the  movements  of  finite  action, 
according  to  their  real  desert  and  character.  This  is 
sometimes  described  as  holiness  in  action  :  moral  and 
spiritual  jDerfection  brought  into  exercise  ;  opposing 
and  chastening  evil  and  wrong,  sustaining,  and  help- 
ing, and  rewarding  the  right.  This  quality  in  the  char- 
acter,  and  motives,  and  actions  of  moral  beings  is  con- 
stantly imx^lied  in  Scripture  ;  in  j)articular  cases,  spe- 
cifically asserted.  They  are  right  or  wrong.  As  so, 
they  are  objects  of  Divine  apj)roval  or  condemnation  ; 
of  Divine  administrative  acts,  in  view  of  which  the 
right  will  be  vindicated,  the  wrong  opposed,  and  finally 
be  punished.  It  is  a  power  not  only  working  for  right- 
eousness, but  in  righteousness  ;  in  that  righteousness 
identified  with  the  cause  of  the  righteous,  opposing 
and  condemning  its  opposite.  "  God,"  says  the  psalm- 
ist, "  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness,"  Slich 
judgment  is  going  on  during  the  whole  Divine  admin- 


108  THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

istration  ;  is  finally  perfected  in  the  great  day  of  final 
retribution. 

This  justice  may  thus  be  contemplated,  first,  in  its 
legislative  asi^ect  ;  as  expressing  itself  in  laws  and  pre- 
cepts, whether  in  the  natural  constitution  of  things,  or 
as  specifically  revealed.  It  may  be  also  looked  at  in 
its  executive  administration,  enforcing  those  laws  in 
one  direction,  warning  against  their  violation  in  an- 
other ;  as  Judicial,  rewarding  the  obedient  and  punish- 
ing the  disobedient.  The  questions  of  natural  and 
revealed  laws,  or  of  natural  and  positive  rewards  and 
penalties,  may  be  more  jDrojjerly  treated  elsewhere. 
It  is  sufficient  for  our  jDurpose  that  these  features  in 
the  attribute  of  justice  or  righteousness  be  clearly 
recognized.  God,  as  a  God  of  holiness  and  righteous- 
ness, hating  evil  and  loving  right  ;  in  His  law  reveal- 
ing His  righteous  will,  as  to  the  acts  and  motives  of 
His  creatures  ;  in  His  dealings  enforcing  and  sustain- 
ing those  laws  ;  in  His  judgments,  rewarding  and  pun- 
ishing. "  The  statutes  of  the  Lord  are  right'^'  (Ps. 
19  :  8).  "  The  perfect  will  of  God"  (Rom.  12  :  1). 
"  Thou  sittest  in  the  throne  judging  right"  (Ps.  9  :  4). 
"  God  judgeth  the  righteous,  and  is  angry  with  the 
wicked"  (Ps.  7  :  11).  "  Thy  judgments  are  right"  (Ps. 
119  :  75). 

The  attribute  of  wisdom  is  not  usually  classified 
with  the  moral.  As,  however,  distinct  from  knowl- 
edge, simple  intelligence,  it  rather  belongs  here.  Wis- 
dom has  been  defined  as  "an  exercise  of  the  intellect 
into  which  the  highest  affections  of  the  heai't  enter." 


THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  109 

So,  again,  as  knowing  how  to  nse  l^nowledge  ;  or  the 
Ivnowing  good,  to  the  attainment  of  good.  As  wisdom 
is  thus  intelligence  pins  the  capacity  of  devising  and 
attaining  what  is  right  and  good,  aocpia^  •^P^H',  so  it 
is  contrasted  with  craft,  8o\oi^  Di"i;r,  cunning,  or  even 
skill,  in  which  the  right  and  good  may  not  be  present, 
or  in  which  may  be  sought  their  opposite.  As  related 
to  knowledge,  its  meaning  can  only  be  brought  out  by 
some  defining  adjective  ;  and  that,  as  bringing  out  the 
moral  element  in  its  exercise.  In  the  omniscience  of 
God,  for  instance,  we  affirm  His  x^erfect  knowledge  of 
all  things  and  of  all  beings  ;  of  his  own  perfections,  as 
of  the  imperfections  of  His  creatures.  In  His  wisdom 
we  affirm,  further,  the  exercise  of  that  knowledge,  as 
in  harmony  wdth  and  dictated  by  His  holiness,  and 
truth,  and  righteousness,  and  love.  In  the  harmonious 
cooperation  of  these  attributes  He  is  the  only  wise 
God,  knowing  and  purposing  good  results  ;  of  blessing 
to  all  His  subjects  and  creatures. 

This  implies  ends  contemplated,  and  means  to  be  em- 
ployed to  their  attainment.  The  final  end,  in  creature 
action,  as  revealed  in  Scripture  precept,  is,  that  all  be 
done  to  the  glory  of  God.  That  which  is  thus  present- 
ed as  the  ultimate  end  with  the  creature,  is  revealed 
as  the  end  with  the  Creator.  But  God  thus  glorifies 
Himself  in  the  creature  by  making  that  creature  like 
Himself,  in  blessedness  as  well  as  in  holiness.  Doing 
the  will  of  God,  the  creature  glorifies  God  ;  in  so  doing- 
becomes  like  Him,  secures  His  approval,  and  the  high- 
est blessedness  of  which  He  is  capable.     God's  ulti- 


110  THE  DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

mate  end  is  to  reveal  Himself  in  His  perfection  of 
blessedness  ;  in  so  doing  to  commnnicate  Himself  in 
that  blessedness  to  His  dependent  creatnres.  Tlie  ulti- 
mate beatific  vision  of  the  redeemed  is  thus  to  "  see 
Him  as  He  is."  As  His  glorious  j^e^rfections  are  thus 
appreciated  and  appropriated,  these  His  creatures  are 
blessed  and  elevated. 

As  to  the  means  of  securing  these  ends,  we  may  say 
that  the  best  M^ill  always  be  taken.  We  are  not  capa- 
ble of  judging  here.  What  may  seem  complicated, 
inadequate,  or  even  inconsistent  with  the  ends  to  be 
secured,  may  not  only  be  the  best,  but  really  the  sim- 
plest and  shortest.  Finite  wisdom  often  needs  a 
variety  of  means  to  secure  a  single  end.  Infinite, 
often  through  a  single  mean,  may  secure  a  variety  of 
ends.  In  that  efi'ort  and  work  every  moment  is  filled 
up,  and  perfectly  ;  and  in  the  full  result  will  be  no 
waste  of  time,  effort,  or  material.  "  The  foolishness 
of  God  is  wiser  than  men"  (1  Cor.  1  :  25).  "  Jehovah 
by  wisdom  founded  the  earth"  (Prov.  3  :  19).  "  O 
Lord,  how  manifold  are  Thy  works  ;  in  wisdom  hast 
Thou  made  them  all"  (Ps.  104  :  24).  "  O  the  depth  of 
the  riches,  both  of  the  wisdom  and  knowledge  of  God" 
(Rom.  11  :  33). 

We  thus  reach  what,  in  Scripture,  is  made  the  com- 
plement and  completion  of  tliese  attributes  of  moral 
perfection — that  of  love,  goodness,  benevolence.  Two 
of  these  words  express  the  Divine  working  of  a  certain 
character  ;  the  other  the  impulse  to  it,  the  Divine  love. 
"  God  is  love."     He  is  holy,  and  true,  and  righteous, 


THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES.  Ill 

and  wise  ;  and  He  is  loving.  In  the  exercise  of  these 
others  and  of  all  His  attributes  He  is  not  indifferent  as 
to  the  interests  and  welfare  of  those  to  whom,  in  snch 
working,  they  have  regard.  As  His  creatures,  called 
by  Him  into  existence,  reflecting  to  some  degree  His 
X)erfections,  they  are  objects  of  His  love.  This  love 
goes  out  in  goodness,  in  blessing  to  the  creature  to  the 
extent  of  his  capacity  of  recej)tion.  Question  has  been 
raised,  and  the  effort  made,  to  resolve  all  the  moral  at- 
tributes into  this  one  of  love,  benevolence  ;  to  repre- 
sent them  as  different  forms  of  its  operation.  The 
difficulty,  however,  to  this  is  that  the  ideas  of  these 
other  attributes  are  simple,  not  resolvable  into  others. 
The  words  describing  them  refer  to  distinct  character- 
istics, and  are  thus  emjiloyed  in  Scripture.  In  such 
usage,  too,  we  see  that  there  is  a  guard  against  the 
error  of  making  Divine  love  that  of  mere  sentimen- 
talism  ;  that  which  is  indiscriminate,  and  without  ref- 
erence to  character.  And  yet,  while  we  cannot  resolve 
these  attributes  into  love,  w^e  must  remember  it  as  in 
them  all,  as  in  them  effectively  operative.  The  ten- 
dency of  Christian  theology,  at  one  period,  was  to  em- 
phasize another  of  these  atttributes,  that  of  justice,  to 
the  losing  sight  of  others  ;  at  another,  that  of  almighty 
power.  The  present  tendency  is  to  forget  these  in  the 
afRrmation  of  love.  The  problem  is  to  take  account  of 
all ;  and,  in  the  fulness  and  emphasis  of  the  Divine 
revelation  of  love,  to  find  its  j)lace  ;  its  propulsion,  so 
to  speak,  in  every  Divine  act,  whether  of  x^ower,  right- 
eousness, or  wisdom.     "  God  is  love"  is  one  of  the  last 


112  THE   DIVINE  ATTRIBUTES. 

utterances  as  to  His  cliaracter  and  action.  "  The  love 
of  God,  in  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,"  the  ground  of 
human  confidence  and  consolation.  As  we  thus  find 
holiness,  the  entireness  of  the  Divine  moral  excellence, 
so  we  find  love,  the  element  pervading  them  all,  and 
bringing  blessing  in  their  operation.  It  is  of  the  es- 
sence of  love  to  seek  to  bless  its  object.  In  that  seek- 
ing there  will  be  no  sacrifice  of  any  other  perfection, 
but  rather  its  enforcement  and  highest  illustration. 

See    Knapp,  Dwight,   and    Hodge,  and  especially   Dr.   Fairchild  s 
"  Elements  of  Theology,"  for  this  and  the  section  following. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   DOCTRINE    OF   TKIlSriTY. 

In  what  sense  a  mystery. — Threefoldness  in  unity. — Natural  analogies. 
— Ground  of  reception,  and  position  in  New  Testament  teaching. — 
How  far  to  be  found  in  Old  Testament. — Two  general  classes  of 
passages  in  New  Testament. — What  to  be  established  as  to  the  Son 
and  Blessed  Spirit. — Passages  in  which  these  truths  are  exhibited. — 
Economy  of  the  Divine  Revelation,  as  to  this  doctrine. 

In  the  unity  of  God,  the  infinitude  of  the  Divine 
perfection,  we  have  mystery,  not  in  tlie  sense  of  the 
undiscoverable,  but  in  that  of  the  incomprehensible. 
Tlie  one  God,  "  God  over  all,  blessed  forever,"  tran- 
scending all  human,  all  finite  capacity  of  comprehen- 
sion^— a  necessity  of  human  thought,  and  yet,  to  human 
thought,  the  great  mystery. 

In  the  Trinity,  the  Triunity,  the  threefoldness  in 
unity,  or  unity  in  threefoldness  of  God,  revealed  in 
the  New  Testament,  it  may  be  said  that  there  is  mys- 
tery in  both  of  these  senses — the  undiscoverable  and  the 
incomprehensible.  Its  difficulty,  however,  is  not  so 
much  its  incomxDrehensibility,  in  either  one  or  both 
of  these  senses,  as  in  its  supposed  or  apparent  contra- 
diction ;  the  three  in  one  or  the  one  in  three.  Under- 
standing it  to  mean  that  God  is  one  and  three,  in  all 
respects  exactly  alike  and  the  same,  there  would  be 


114  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  TRINITY. 

sucli  contradiction.  There  is  no  necessity  for  any  such 
statement.  There  are  many  forms  of  finite  threefold- 
ness  perfectly  consistent  with  unity.  If  so  with  the 
finite,  much  more  with  the  infinite.  We  find  that,  in 
the  aflirmation  of  this  tlireefoldness,  there  are  distinc- 
tions indicating  differences  ;  the  persons,  related  to 
each  other  in  the  Divine  unity,  are  severally  related 
to  men  in  the  work  of  redemption.  There  is  thus 
indicated  one  God,  one  Divine  nature.  In  this  Divine 
nature  are  the  distinctions  of  Father,  Son,  and  Holy 
Ghost ;  and  these  equally  and  in  common  have  the 
nature  and  perfections  of  Supreme  Deity.  How  thus 
in  all  respects  three  and  one.  Scripture  does  not  say. 
Its  object,  rather,  is  to  exhibit  this  truth  in  its  connec- 
tion with  human  redemption  ;  in  its  adaptation  to 
human  necessity. 

As  to  the  difliiculties  of  threefoldness  in  unity,  effort 
has  been  made,  in  the  way  of  analogy,  to  remove  them. 
The  threefoldness,  in  the  unity  of  human  nature,  of 
body,  soul,  and  spirit ;  that,  again,  in  the  spiritual 
nature  of  man,  of  intelligence,  sensibility  and  will  ; 
those,  again,  of  unity,  in  manifoldness  of  relations,  as 
son,  father,  and  brother  ;  or,  further,  again,  of  that 
one  human  being  in  varied  manifestations— all  these 
may  help  to  remove  the  difficulties.  As  are  all  human 
analogies,  these  are  in  the  sphere  of  the  finite,  and 
touch,  perhaps,  at  only  one  point.  The  essential  ques- 
tion is  :  Have  we  this  truth  clearly  exhibited  in  the 
teaching  of  Christ  and  His  apostles  ?  What  is  its  sub- 
stance and  place  in  that  teaching  ;  its  practical  ap- 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF  TRINITY.  115 

plication  ?  We  may,  as  we  suppose,  see  reasons  for  it 
prior  to  all  Scripture  teaching.  We  may  see  such  rea- 
sons for  it,  after  it  has  been  clearly  tanght.  But  the 
real  question  is  that  already  stated  :  Has  God  spoken 
in  this  matter  1     What  is  His  meaning  ? 

In  seeking  the  reply  to  this,  we  first  notice  the  place 
of  this  doctrine  in  the  Christian  system.  It  is  pri- 
mary, fundamental.  The  apostles  were  sent  out  to 
baptize  men  into  a  profession  of  it,  as  heartily  accept- 
ed. As  men  thus  knew  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost, 
they  came  savingly  in  contact  with  the  great  redemp- 
tive features  of  Christianity.  It  may  be  said  that  this 
doctrine  constitutes  the  spinal  column  of  the  Christian 
system.  It  forms  the  main  substance  of  the  early 
creeds.  Those  creeds,  indeed,  are  only  enlargements 
of  the  early  baptismal  formula  of  Matt.  28  :  19,  and  are 
introductory  to  all  the  doctrinal  contents  of  the  New 
Testament.  We  thus  look  at  this  New  Testament 
teaching. 

The  question  as  to  the  teaching  of  the  Old  Testament 
on  this  doctrine  has  been  differently  answered.  Some 
of  its  declarations,  read  in  the  light  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, are  strikingly  significant.  It  must  be  said  that, 
if  contained  in  these  passages,  the  doctrine  was  not 
recognized  by  Old  Testament  readers.  The  logos  of 
Alexandrian  Judaism  hovers  between  a  personified  at- 
tribute and  a  personality.  The  same  may  be  said  of 
the  Memra  Jehovah  of  the  Rabbinic  theology.  The 
angel  Jehovah,  in  one  part  of  the  narrative  distin- 
guished from  Jehovah,  and  in  another  identified  with 


116  THE   DOCTRINE  OF  TRINITY. 

Ilim,  has  its  bearing  in  the  same  direction.  So,  too, 
passages  spealving  of  the  Spirit  of  God  in  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, the  passage  standing  by  itself  may  mean  either 
an  attribute  or  a  personalitj^.  The  specific  classes  of 
passages  usually  quoted  on  this  topic  are  fourfold. 

(a)  Those  in  which  plurality  of  names  and  actions  is 
affirmed.  ' '  Elohim  said' ' — singular  verb—' '  let  us' '  — 
plural — ' '  make  man. ' '  Elohim  said,  ' '  Let  us  go  down' ' 
(Gen.  11  :  7).  Jehovah  said,  "  Who  will  go  for  us?" 
(Isa.  6  :  8). 

{b)  Where  the  names  are  separated  and  distin- 
guished. "  Jehovah  rained  fire  and  brimstone  from 
Jehovah"  (Gen.  19  :  2-1).  "  O  our  God,  hear  our  pray- 
er, for  the  Lord's  sake"  (Dan.  9  :  17).  "  Jehovah  said 
to  my  Lord"  (Ps.  110:1). 

(c)  The  names  of  Son  and  Spirit  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. "  And  now  Jehovah  and  His  Spirit  hath  sent 
me"  (Isa.  48:16).  "The  heavens  were  made  by  the 
word  of  the  Lord,  and  the  host  of  them  by  the  breath 
of  His  mouth"  (Ps.  33  :  6). 

{d)  Threefoldness  of  expression.  "Jehovah  bless 
thee,"  etc.  (Num.  6  :  24).  "  Holy,  holy,  holy"  (Isa. 
6:3). 

Any  one  of  these  passages  or  classes,  taken  by  itself, 
might  not  have  importance  as  proof.  All  taken  to- 
gether constitute  a  problem,  of  which  the  New  Testa- 
ment doctrine  of  the  Trinity  is  the  satisfactory  solu- 
tion. Read  in  the  light  of  that  New  Testament 
revelation,  many  of  those  i)assages  are  full  of  pro- 
found significance. 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF  TRINITY.  117 

Passing  on  to  the  New  Testament,  we  find  a  twofold 
classification  of  passages  :  those  of  a  collective  and 
those  of  an  individual  character.  In  the  first,  the  per- 
sons are  mentioned  together.  In  the  second,  they  are 
mentioned  singly.  To  the  former  we,  therefore,  first 
give  attention.  These  are  the  apostolic  commission, 
Matt.  3  :  16,  17  ;  28  :  19,  20  ;  1  Pet.  1:2;  John  14  :  26  ; 
2  Cor.  13  :  14  ;  Eph.  2:18;  Rev.  1  :  4,  5. 

As  a  summary  of  the  contents  of  these,  we  find  : 
First,  association  of  three  names  or  subjects,  one  of 
whom  is  undoubtedly  personal  deity.  Second,  per- 
sonality is  explicitly  affirmed  of  the  second,  and  neces- 
sarily implied  in  what  is  said  of  the  third.  Third, 
the  order  of  mention  is  not  invariable  ;  the  second 
sometimes  first,  the  third,  second  or  first  (2  Cor.  13  :  14  ; 
1  Pet.  1  : 1,  2  ;  Rev.  1  :  4,  5  ;  Eph.  2  : 1,  8).  Fourth, 
such  collocation,  as  also  the  change  of  the  order  and 
the  common  fact  of  personality,  suggest  equality. 

In  passing  from  these  to  the  second  class  of  pas- 
sages, those  in  which  mention  is  made  of  Father,  Son, 
and  Holy  Ghost  separately,  the  two  points  needing  to 
be  established  are,  first,  their  personality,  then  their 
deity.  As  to  the  Father  and  the  Son,  there  is  no 
doubt  as  to  the  personality.  This  needs  especially  to 
be  proved  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  So,  again,  there  is  no 
question  as  to  the  Deity  of  the  Father.  Recognizing 
the  twofold  scriptural  application  of  the  term  Father, 
sometimes  as  the  Divine  Being  or  nature,  and  then, 
more  specifically,  in  His  relation  to  the  second  person, 
the  Son,  we  pass  on  to  the  examination  of  the  passages 


118  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  TRINITY. 

bearing  upon  tlie  two  points  tlins  mentioned  :  tlie  Deity 
of  the  Son,  the  personality  and  deity  of  the  Holy 
Ghost. 

First,  then,  as  to  the  Deity  of  the  Son.  This  is 
found  in  passages  which  give  Him  Divine  names  ; 
which  affirm  of  Him  Divine  attributes  and  w^orks  ; 
which  involve  expressions  of  adoration  and  worship. 
A  Being  who  is  to  be  called  God,  who  has  the  perfec- 
tions of  God,  and  is  to  be  worshipped  as  God,  is  to 
be  regarded  as  God,  as  a  Divine  being. 

As  to  the  first,  Divine  names  (John  1:1),  "  Tlie  Word 
was  God."  "  I  and  My  Father  are  one"  (John  10  :  28, 
30).  "  My  Lord  and  My  God"  (John  20  :  28).  "  Equal 
with  God"  (Phil.  2  :  6).  Examine  Rom.  9  :  5  and  Tifcufe 
1:4;  2  :  13. 

And  as  Divine  names  are  thus  applied  to  the  Son,  so 
we  find  also  Divine  attributes  and  works.  Eternity,  in 
John  17:5;  8:58:  "The  glory  which  I  had  with 
Thee  before  the  world  was."  "  Before  Abraham  was, 
I  am."  Creative  power,  in  John  1:2;  Col.  1  :  15,  17  ; 
Phil.  3  :  21  ;  Heb.  1:3;  John  5  :  17-20.  "  All  things 
were  made  by  Him."  "  By  Him  were  all  things  made 
in  heaven  and  in  earth."  ' '  Upholding  all  things  by  the 
word  of  His  power."  "  He  is  able  to  subdue  all  things 
unto  Himself."  "  No  one  knoweth  the  Father  but  the 
Son"  (Matt.  11  :  27). 

And  these  Divine  names,  and  attributes,  and  works 
ascribed  to  Him  are  accompanied  by  expressions  of 
reverence  and  acts  of  worship,  as  to  a  Divine  being. 
"  Show,  Lord,  whom  Thou  hast  chosen"  (Acts  1  :  24). 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF  TRINITY.  119 

''Lord  Jesus,  receive  my  spirit"  (Acts  7:69,  60). 
''  At  or  in  the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  should  bovv^" 
(Phil.  2:10).  "I  besought  the  Lord  thrice"  (2  Cor. 
12  :  8).  "  All  men  should  honor  the  Son  even  as  they 
honor  the  Father' '  (John  5  :  23). 

In  the  proof  of  the  Deity  of  the  blessed  Spirit,  the 
Holy  Ghost,  that  of  His  personality  first  claims  atten- 
tion— the  fact  that  in  speaking  of  the  Spirit  of  God 
the  Scriptures  do  not  mean  merely  a  power,  or  at- 
tribute, or  such  attribute  personified,  but  a  Divine  per- 
son, x>ossessed  of  all  the  Divine  attributes.  We  look, 
therefore,  first  at  the  language  as  to  this  point,  and 
then,  further,  as  to  Divine  nature  and  perfection. 

One  of  the  first  of  these  may  be  seen  in  the  language 
of  our  Lord,  in  John  14  and  16,  as  to  the  Paraclete  or 
Helper,  who,  on  His  departure,  would  take  His  place. 
This  language  describes  not  a  power,  but  a  person. 
"He  would  lead  them  into  all  truth."  "He  would 
teach  them  ;"  "  would  call  all  things  to  their  remem- 
brance" of  His  previous  teaching  ;  "  would  convict  the 
world  of  sin  ;"  "  would  show  them  things  to  come  ;" 
would  reveal  the  real  and  full  significance  of  Christ's 
work  and  jDerson.  He  is  thus  described  by  the  mascu- 
line ensivo;,  not  it,  but  He,  So,  further,  in  1  Cor. 
12:4-11,  He  imparts  jrvpzcr/^n'ra',  distinct  from  Him- 
self. He  is  distinguished  from  nvpio?  and  from  deos, 
and  imparts  His  gifts  autocratically,  jtaOoo?  fSovXarai, 
"as  He  will." 

And  this  personality,  thus  described,  is  in  these  pas- 
sages, as  in  others,  also  spoken  of  as  exercising  Divine 


120  THE    DOCTRINE   OF  TRINITY. 

powers.  In  1  Cor.  2  :  10  lie  reveals  truth,  searclies  the 
depth  of  infinitude,  ' '  the  deep  things  of  God  ;' '  in  Acts 
13  :  2-4  orders  the  separation  of  Paul  and  Barnabas. 
These  show  tliat,  in  the  collective  passages,  as  Matt. 
28  and  2  Cor.  12  :  13,  personality  is  involved:  This 
person  thus  exercises  the  attributes  of  omniscience,  of 
omnipotence,  of  omnij^resence,  of  wisdom. 

As  to  Divine  worship,  we  find,  in  Rom.  9  :  1,  the 
Holy  Spirit  is  invoked  by  the  apostle  as  present  to 
know  the  truth  of  his  assertion  ;  and  in  Matt.  12  :  31, 
"  blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost"  is  spoken  of  as 
an  offence  of  the  deepest  malignity. 

Again,  as  to  Divine  names,  we  find,  in  Acts  5  :  3,  4, 
that  lying  against  the  Holy  Ghost  is  spoken  of  as  lying 
against  God.  The  names  are  interchanged.  If  it  be 
said  that  lying  against  Peter,  as  appointed  of  God, 
would  have  been  lying  against  God,  the  reply  is,  that 
in  the  one  case  the  creaturely  character  of  the  mediate 
agent  would  be  undoubted,  in  the  other  it  is  not. 
Standing  by  itself,  this  text  might  not  be  sufficient  as 
full  proof  of  Deity  of  the  blessed  spirit.  That  proof 
is  seen  as  it  is  taken  with  others. 

In  glancing  over  these  passages,  as  to  the  Deity  of 
the  second  and  third  persons  of  the  adorable  Trinity, 
there  is  exhibited  a  S23ecialty,  and  amj^lification,  and 
profuseness  as  to  the  second  which  is  not  found  with 
the  third.  The  explanation  seems  to  be  twofold. 
First,  the  difficulty  of  plurality  in  unity  is  encountered 
in  the  issue  of  our  Lord's  Deity  ;  after  this  there  was 
less  need  of  such  variety  of  statement  and  amplifica- 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF   TRINITY.  121 

tion.  Second,  the  idea  of  divineness,  power,  knowl- 
edge, wisdom  was  already  familiar,  and  associated 
with  the  idea  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  The  development 
of  doctrine  really  needed  was  the  truth  of  His  person- 
ality. When  this  became  clear,  the  doctrine  assumed 
its  full  proportions.  Old  passages  of  the  law  and  the 
prophets  were  read  with  a  new  meaning.  Just  as  the 
old  meanings  of  Son  of  God,  angels,  good  men,  magis- 
trates, or  a  being  called  by  creative  act  into  existence, 
came  to  include  all  these  meanings,  and  something  di- 
vinely more,  so  to  these  old  meanings  of  the  Spirit  of 
God,  Divine  power,  or  knowledge,  or  wisdom,  or  these 
personified,  was  added  that  of  the  personal  Holy 
Ghost,  the  Lord  and  Giver  of  life,  with  the  Father 
and  the  Son  to  be  worshix)ped  and  glorified. 

There  is  a  profound  significance  in  the  suggestion  of 
Archbishop  Whately  as  to  the  Divine  rationale,  so  to 
speak,  of  the  lateness  of  the  clear  and  distinct  revela- 
tion of  this  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  :  that  of  its  practi- 
cal aj)plication  and  importance.  Prior  to  the  actual 
manifestation  of  the  second  Person  in  the  work  of 
human  redemption,  and  that  of  the  blessed  Spirit  in 
its  living  ai3]3lication,  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  even 
if  intelligible,  would  have  been  largely  speculative. 
As  it  is,  it  is  seen  to  touch  every  part,  and  to  meet 
every  necessity  of  human  nature.  It  is  thus  a  doc- 
trine not  to  speculate  about,  but  to  appropriate  and 
live  upon  :  God,  a  loving  Father,  in  the  infinite  self- 
sacrifice  and  the  gift  of  his  well-beloved  Son  ;  God,  a 
Divine-Human  Brother,  knowing,   feeling  with,  and 


122  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  TRINITY. 

able  to  help  Ills  human  brethren  ;  God,  an  ever-pres- 
ent Spirit  in  life,  and  in  effect  enlightening,  sustain- 
ing, and  consoling  in  all  human  trial  and  experience, 
making  Divine  truth  living  and  energetic  in  human 
minds  and  hearts  ;  God,  Father,  Son,  and  Holj^  Ghost, 
thus  the  God  of  human  nature,  in  the  fulness  of  whose 
revelation  all  the  wants  and  aspirations  of  this  nature 
are  met  and  satisfied. 


CHAPTER  X 

CEEATION   AND   ORIGIN   OF   THE   WORLD. 

The  idea  of  creation. — Different  from  that  of  mere  arrangement. — How 
related  to  theories  of  Evolution. — Divine  Preservation,  Providence, 
and  Government. 

The  truth  of  tlie  Divine  Trinity,  of  the  Divine  Unity 
in  its  threefoldness  of  manifestation  and  working,  has 
more  special  reference  to  the  world  of  men — moral  and 
spiritual  beings  in  spiritual  relations  to  God  and  to  each 
other.  God  the  Father,  God  the  Son,  and  God  the 
Holy  Ghost  are  alike  spoken  of  in  creation.  So,  too, 
they  all  co-operate  in  redemption  ;  but  each  one  in  His 
special  mode.  God  the  Father  loves  the  world,  and, 
in  the  self-sacrifice  of  love,  sends  His  well-beloved  Son 
for  its  deliverance.  God  the  Son,  in  like  love  and  self- 
sacrifice,  comes  and  takes  upon  Him  human  nature, 
working  and  suffering  for  its  benefit.  God  the  Holy 
Ghost  reveals  and  makes  these  truths  savingly  effect- 
ual. The  Trinity  is  thus  the  doctrine  of  God  as  relat- 
ed to  a  world  of  moral  and  spiritual  beings  ;  is  spe- 
cially adapted  to  the  necessities  of  these  beings  as 
fallen  and  sinful. 

The  truth  of  the  Divine  Unity,  while  in  most  impor- 
tant respects  related  to  man,  is  more  x^redominantly  so 


124         CREATION  AND   ORIGIN  OP^   THE  WORLD. 

in  Scripture  to  the  world  of  creation,  as  called  into  ex- 
istence, sustained  and  regulated.  In  the  question,  there- 
fore, of  the  origin  and  creation  of  the  world,  including 
our  own  system,  or  any  of  which  we  have  knowledge, 
we  contemplate  the  Divine  Unity.  "  God,"  said  the 
ax)ostle  to  his  Athenian  hearers,  "  that  made  the 
world  and  all  things  therein."  This  has  its  positive 
meaning.  It  has  in  view  opposing  affirmations  ;  and 
it  is  connected  with  practical  inferences  of  the  highest 
practical  importance.  To  some  of  these  we  give  ex- 
amination. 

Manifestly,  in  this  particular  case,  it  was  intended 
to  assert  the  unity  of  the  Creator  of  the  world  against 
the  multitude  of  deities  worshipped  by  his  hearers. 
This  is  its  frequent  imjDlication  in  the  Old  and  New 
Testament.  "  To  us  there  is  but  one  God."  "  He 
made  the  world,  and  all  that  is  therein."  The  claims 
of  all  others,  therefore,  are  empty  and  false.  "  In  the 
beginning  God  created  the  heaven  and  the  earth  ;"  not 
only  our  earth  or  planet,  but  whatever  else  is  included 
in  the  heavens.  "Thou,  Lord,"  said  the  psalmist, 
"in  the  beginning  hast  laid  the  foundations  of  the 
earth,  and  the  heavens  are  the  work  of  Thy  hands' ' 
(Ps.  102 :  25).  "  He  that  created  the  heavens  and 
stretched  them  out"  (Isa,  42  :  5).  "  The  heaven,  even 
the  heaven  of  heavens,  is  the  Lord's"  (Ps.  115:  16). 
"Hath  not  My  hand  made  all  things?"  (Acts  7  :  50.) 
"  Of  Him,  and  through  Him,  and  to  Ilim  are  all 
things"  (Rom.  11  :  36).  The  origin  of  the  world,  of 
the  heaven  and  the  earth,  as  they  now  are  in  these 


CREATION  AND   ORIGIN  OF  THE   WORLD.      .    125 

passages,  is  clearly  affirmed,  as  in  the  Divine  will  and 
working. 

But  the  issue  is  made  of  tlio  difference  between  crea- 
tion—that which  calls  things  into  existence,  not  form- 
ing and  arranging  existing  material,  but  calling  the 
material  itself  into  existence  ;  creation  in  the  strict 
sense  of  the  word.  The  effort  has  been  to  find  in  these 
passages  only  the  ordering  and  arrangement  of  pre- 
existing material — the  transformation  of  chaos  into 
cosmos.  "  Ex  niJiilo,  niJiil  fiV  was  the  maxim  of 
heathen  philosophy,  as  it  is  sometimes  now  of  natu- 
ralistic unbelief.  But  infinitude,  the  infinitude  of  the 
Divine  perfection,  is  not  niliil.  In  His  resources  all 
such  difficulties  are  imaginary.  The  matter,  the  atoms, 
the  vortices,  or  whatever  their  name,  elementary  to  the 
coming  cosmos,  must  be  created,  or  it  must  originate 
itself.  Things  do  not  come  just  dry  so.  They  must 
exist  uncaused,  or  they  must  find  a- cause  adequate  to 
their  origination.  Such  adequate  Cause  is  Infinite  Per- 
fection— God  !  Agnosticism,  while  affirming  ignorance 
as  to  the  character  and  actions  of  such  sufficient  Cause, 
finds  it  a  necessity  to  world  existence.  The  only  origi- 
nating efficient  of  cause  of  which  we  have  knowledge 
is  that  of  mind  and  will,  the  originative  power  of 
moral  and  spiritual  beings.  Human  thought  is  thus 
forced  to  the  conclasion  of  inspired  truth.  ''God," 
not  merely  the  Framer  or  Disposer,  but  the  "  Creator 
of  tlie  heavens  and  the  earth." 

As  to  the  language  of  Scripture,  it  falls  in  with  this 
idea   of   creation.     "There   are,"    says    Dean   Smith, 


126         CREATION  AND  ORIGIN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

"  three  words  employed  in  the  Old  Testament  in  refer- 
ence to  the  production  of  the  world — x'^3,  He  created  ; 
■^V;,  He  formed  ;  and  nty;r,  He  made — the  first  term 
being  appropriated  exclusively  to  God  alone,  who  is 
alone  called  Creator.  Creation,  therefore,  accord- 
ing to  the  Hebrew,  is  a  Divine  act  ;  though,  accord- 
ing to  its  etymology,  it  does  not  necessarily  imply 
a  creation  out  of  nothing,  it  does  signify  the  Divine 
production  of  something  new,  something  that  did  not 
exist  before.  "It  denotes,"  says  Delitzsch,  "a  Di- 
vine and  miraculous  production,  having  its  commence- 
ment in  time."  The  expression,  "  God  said,  let  it  be, 
and  it  was,"  is,  perhaps,  the  most  striking  of  all  these 
forms.  As  the  similar  one  elsewhere,  "  He  spake,  and 
it  was  done." 

Nor  are  these  statements  confined  to  the  simple  fact 
of  originating  material.  One  form  of  speculation  de- 
nies this  truth  of  Divine  origination.  Another,  admit- 
ting this,  denies  its  continued  operation.  The  inspired 
record  affirms  both.  It  goes  on  and  exhibits  the  Crea- 
tor as  arranging  and  ordering  the  material,  through 
the  ages,  to  the  production  of  the  ]3resent  condition  of 
things  ;  by  which  the  world  was  organized  and  brought 
into  condition  for  animal  and  human  habitation.  5<'^3, 
as  we  have  seen,  is  used  of  the  first,  "  God  created." 
And  then,  following,  in  the  other  words  and  forms  of  ex- 
pression, are  described  His  continued  action  and  super- 
vision. The  operation  of  Divine  law,  material,  chemical, 
vegetable,  and  organic  forces,  is  not,  by  the  Divine  will, 
excluded.     At  the  same  time,  the  ox^eration  of  these 


CREATION  AND   ORIGIN   OP  THE   WORLD  127 

does  not  and  cannot  exclude  the  presence  and  agency 
of  Him  who  called  them  into  existence— originating 
not  only  tlie  material,  but  its  laws  and  forces.  If  this 
be  called  evolution,  there  is  no  difficulty  with  it,  if  it 
be  recognized  as  the  working  out  of  the  X)i'evious  invo- 
lution of  the  Divine  purpose,  as  the  accompanying 
Divine  agency,  controlling  it  to  His  designed  result. 
His  hand  is  in  and  over  the  evolution,  as  is  His  mind. 
His  purpose  in  the  involution.  God  is  present  and 
operative  in  both  of  these  respects  all  through  the 
whole  chapter  of  Genesis,  as  He  is  in  the  first  verse. 
In  the  different  stages  He  is  present.  He  speaks,  and 
results  follow  ;  He  directs  as  to  processes,  and  those 
processes  are  accomplished  ;  He  approves  them  as 
"  good,"  as  "very  good,"  as  adequate  to  His  intended 
purposes.  The  process,  too,  it  may  be  said,  is  in  what 
is  now  seen  to  be  the  natural  order  of  forces  and  opera- 
tions.* It  begins  with  matter,  with  its  principles  of 
gravity  and  affinity  ;  it  rises  from  this  to  the  vege- 
table world,  with  its  jDrinciple  of  vitality  ;  it  rises  from 
this  to  the  animal  world,  with  its  principles  of  sensa- 
tion and  instinct.  And  it  rises  from  this  to  man,  in 
his  world,  and  with  his  powers  of  rational  and  moral 
rellection  and  action.  Each  step  rests  upon,  takes  in 
the  former,  and  is  something  additional.  At  every 
such  step  comes  in  the  Divine  Creator,  and  in  each, 
calling  out,  for  the  new  stage,  its  laws  and  princij^les  of 
existence.  Of  course  Moses,  or  whoever  wrote  this 
chapter,  knew   nothing   of   this   scientific   order ;  but 

*  See  Hopkins's  Outline  Man. 


128  CREATION  AND  ORIGIN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

somehow  or  other,  lie  lias  described  it.  "  The  heavens 
and  the  earth,  and  the  generations  of  them,"  were  thus, 
in  Divine  creative  power,  connsel,  and  agency  ;  in  His 
arrangement  and  supervision  of  their  varied  forms  and 
modes  of  existence  and  operation.  This  conclusion, 
thus,  first  against  polytheism,  is  no  less  against  mate- 
rialism ;  involves  the  supreme  ownership  of  Jehovah, 
the  God  of  Israel,  as  He  is  of  the  whole  earth. 

Preservation",  Providence,  Government. — Fol- 
lowing naturally  upon  the  truth  of  Divine  creation  is 
that  of  jDreservation— the  continuance  of  beings  and 
things,  with  their  manifold  forms  and  modes  of  exist- 
ence and  operation.  All  beings,  all  things,  in  the  light 
of  Scrij^ture,  as  in  that  of  rational  conclusion,  are  to 
God  in  the  relation  of  absolute  dependence.  They  are 
thus  dependent  upon  Him,  first,  for  existence  ;  still 
further,  for  its  continuance  ;  still  further  for  their 
powers  of  action  and  enjoyment ;  for  the  capacity  of 
exercising  those  j^owers  ;  for  the  objects  to  which  they 
are  related.  Divine  preservation  has  been  called  a 
continued  creation.  Distinction,  however,  is  properly 
made  between  the  two — the  calling  into  existence  and 
the  perpetuation  of  such  existence.  The  distinction  of 
immediate  and  mediate  creation  would  better  describe 
it.  In  both,  however,  is  the  common  truth  of  the  Di- 
vine presence  and  effective  working  ;  and,  in  the  last, 
as  clearly  revealed,  is  there  provision  against  the  ten- 
dency of  human  thought  to  stop  at  the  existing  forces 
and  laws  of  the  natural  work,  as  exhaustive  of  all  the 
agencies  to  its  preservation  and  perpetuation.     Pascal 


CREATION  AND   ORIGIN  OF  THE  WORLD.         129 

said  of  Descartes,  that  his  only  use  for  God,  in  the 
world,  was  to  give  it  a  fillip,  in  the  way  of  a  start,  after 
it  was  made,  and  leave  it  to  its  own  laws  and  forces. 
This  is  the  view  of  the  old  English  deism,  communi- 
cated by  them  to  the  Germans,  and  called  rationalism, 
more  ]3roperly  naturalism,  and  has  come  back  again 
into  English  thought,  as  materialistic  evolution  ;  in 
this,  its  last  form,  getting  rid  even  of  Descartes'  Di- 
vine Creator,  as  of  the  fillip,  starting  creation  on  its 
progress.  The  properly  descriptive  name  for  this,  in 
all  its  forms,  as  already  intimated,  is  naturalism. 
Sometimes  it  is  materialistic  ;  sometimes,  as  including 
all  natural  powers  and  agencies,  those  of  mind  as  of 
matter  ;  but  finding  explanation  of  all  the  phenomena 
of  the  w^orld,  for  its  continued  j)reservation,  as  for  all 
its  forms  of  existence  of  action,  in  the  operation  of 
these  natural  agencies.  Miracle,  the  supernatural,  the 
manifestation  and  working  in  nature  of  the  Author  of 
nature,  is  thus  excluded,  is  ruled  out  as  impossible. 

Over  against  this,  is  the  truth  of  the  Divine  presence 
and  agency,  in  the  continuance  of  the  world,  as  in  its 
creation.  Just  as  in  the  creative  days  God  was  thus 
present  and  operative  in  the  successive  stages,  from 
matter  up  to  man,  and  in  the  operation  of  the  laws 
then  called  forth,  so  is  He  now,  ever  has  been,  and  will 
be  in  the  world's  continuance.  "  The  Lord  is  good  to 
all,  and  His  tender  mercy  is  over  all  His  works." 
"  Thou  openest  Thy  hand,  and  satisfiest  the  desire  of 
every  living  thing"  (Ps.  145  :  9,  15).  So  also  Ps.  147. 
"  Thine  hands  have  made  me  and  fashioned  me"  (Job 


loO         CREATION  AND   ORIGIN   OF   THE   WORLD. 

10  :  8).  "  In  Him  we  live,  and  move,  and  are"  (Acts 
17:28).  "Not  one  of  tliem  forgotten  before  God" 
(Luke  12  :  6).  "  Your  heavenly  Father  feedeth  them" 
(Matt.  6  :  26).  Manifestly  there  is  here  the  implication 
as  the  assertion  of  Diviiio  presence  and  agency  to  the 
world's  continuance  and  preservation.  In  His  ordi- 
nances, Avhether  of  heaven  or  of  earth,  and  giving  them 
effectiveness.  He,  the  God  of  preservation  as  of  crea- 
tion, is  present  and  operative. 

Closely  connected  with  this  truth  of  Divine  preserva- 
tion are  those  of  providence  and  government.  The 
first  has  more  special  reference  to  a  present  arrange- 
ment and  control  of  created  things  and  beings  from 
moment  to  moment  as  they  move  on  ;  the  latter  in  the 
present  also,  but  controlling  and  overruling  for  the 
future.  How  such  providential  agency  is  exercised,  in 
what  manner  it  extends  to  the  minutest  as  to  the 
greatest  matters  ;  how  it  adjusts  itself  to  and  uses 
natural  laws  and  forces  ;  in  what  manner  it  uses,  or 
baffles,  or  overrules  human  agency  without  at  all  in- 
fringing upon  human  freedom  and  accountability,  we 
are  not  told  ;  would  not,  perhaps,  if  told,  be  able  to 
comprehend.  But  the  truth  itself  is  clearly  revealed 
and  distinctly  emphasized.  "  He  doeth  His  will  in  the 
armies  of  heaven,  and  among  the  inhabitants  of  the 
earth"  (Dan.  4  :  35).  "He  maketh  all  things  work 
together  for  good  to  them  that  love  Him"  (Rom.  8: 
28),  "  Herod,  and  Pontius  Pilate,  and  the  Jewish 
rulers  are  described  as  working  out  their  own  counsels. 
And  yet,  while   thus   working   freely   for   their   own 


CREATION  AND   ORIGIN  OF   THE   WORLD.  131 

ends,  witlioiit  intending  or  knowing,  they  accomplish 
the  Divine  pur2)ose.  Tlie  reign  of  law,  material,  phys- 
ical, and  rational,  is  thns  secured.  At  the  same  time, 
in  the  iDrovidential  Divine  administration,  it  does  not 
exclude  the  personal  presence  and  agency  of  its  Divine 
Author  and  Giver.  In  His  providence  these  laws,  in 
their  operation,  are  made  consistent  with  His  special 
designs  and  purposes.  "  In  Him  we  live,  and  move, 
and  are."  He  reveals  Himself  as  an  ever-present  help 
in  every  time  of  trouble.  Prayer,  as  dictated  by  the 
exigencies  of  the  present  necessity,  which,  to  be  an- 
swered, demands  the  exercise  of  present  Divine  power, 
must,  in  faith,  be  made  to  Him.  Creatures,  in  such 
prayer,  are  to  go  to  Him  as  children  to  a  Father  in 
every  exigency.  And  they  have  the  assurance,  not 
only  of  the  Father's  heart  to  sympathize,  but  that  the 
Father's  hand,  all-sufficient  for  help,  will  be  put  forth 
to  their  benefit.  To  Him  in  His  providence  all  things, 
small  and  great  alike,  as  needed,  are  possible.  The 
revelation  of  Him  in  the  micuoscope  is  no  less  wonder- 
ful than  of  that  in  the  telescope.  Details  do  not  ex- 
clude general  j)rincix)les  ;  and  general  principles  do  not 
exclude  details.  (See  Ps.  107  ;  113  ;  Matt.  7  ;  Luke 
12.)  It  may,  indeed,  be  said  that  this  is  the  scriptural 
assumption  everywhere — God  at  hand,  providing  and 
I)resent  to  all  the  wants  and  earnest  petitions  of  His 
creatures. 

And  these  two  truths.  Divine  preservation  and 
providence,  lead  naturally  to,  if  they  do  not  imply. 
Divine  government.     In  this  are  the  ideas  of  purpose^ 


132         CREATION  AKD   ORIGIN  OF  THE  WORLD. 

plan,  ends  to  be  attained,  an  ultimate  end  to  wliicli 
subordinates  have  reference.  In  the  counsel  of  Divine 
perfection,  that  end  cannot  be  anything  imperfect  and 
limited.  "  Jehovah  hath  made  all  things  for  Him- 
self." That  ultimate  end  is  the  manifestation  of  Him- 
self in  His  perfections  as  in  His  blessedness  to  His 
creatures,  thus  imparting  to  them  in  Himself  the  high- 
est good  of  which  they  are  capable.  As  they  "  see 
Him  they  become  like  Him." 

But,  to  this  ultimate  end,  there  are  intermediates 
exhibited  in  the  Divine  administration  ;  sometimes 
in  the  Church,  sometimes  in  the  world.  They  are 
brought  to  view  in  the  -history  of  the  race  in  the  vari- 
ous stages  of  human  experience.  They  are  more  con- 
spicuously exhibited  in  His  revealed  dispensations, 
His  dealings  with  His  servants  and  ancient  j)eople.  His 
I)reparations  in  these  for  the  final  manifestation  of  His 
purposes  of  blessing  and  salvation.  So,  too,  in  the 
affairs  of  this  world,  as  in  Scripture,  He  governs 
against  evil  and  wrong  and  on  the  side  of  righteous- 
ness. The  great  purpose  running  through  all  these  is 
the  establishment  of  a  kingdom  of  righteousness. 
And  the  assui'ance  is  given  that  this  shall  eventually 
become  the  controlling  and  pervading  power  in  human- 
ity. "  All  things  are  to  come  to  a  head  in  Christ." 
"  God  is  to  be  all  in  all."  Creation  begins  with  God, 
calling  all  things  into  being.  God  preserves  and 
guides.  God  rules  and  controls.  God  not  only  thus 
rules,  but  He  shall  be  openly  acknowledged  and  lov- 
ingly obeyed  as  Ruler.     God's  kingdom  in  a  redeemed 


CREATION  AND   ORIGIN  OF  THE   WORLD.         133 

and  glorified  world  is  the  blessed  termination — the 
end  which  has  no  ending. 

The  relation  of  these  truths  to  the  fact  of  the  exist- 
ence of  evil  will  come  wp  in  connection  with  the  sub- 
ject of  sin.  For  the  j)resent  we  may  briefly  summarize 
the  theories  under  which  these  truths  have  been  con- 
strued. 

The  first  has  already  been  intimated  :  God  creating 
and  imposing  forces  and  laws  upon  the  world  and  leav- 
ing it  to  their  oj^eration. 

The  second  is  the  extreme  of  this,  and  rather  loses 
sight  of  natural  laws  and  forces  in  the  Divine  imma- 
nence, acting  directly  in  all  movements  and  opera- 
tions. To  some  degree,  too,  this  Divine  immanence 
gets  away  from  the  idea  of  the  Divine  personality,  or 
fails  to  give  it  due  position.  With  some  it  seems  to  be 
the  old  truth  of  the  omnipresence  of  power,  as  of  love 
and  knowledge,  of  a  Divine  personality.  In  others  it 
seems  to  identify  the  immanent  power  with  that  in 
which  it  is  working,  and  thus  to  run  into  pantheistic 
concex)tions.  To  say  the  least,  the  modes  of  expres- 
sion are  not  at  all  satisfactory.  God  is  in  the  world 
immanent ;  but  also,  distinct  from  the  world,  He  is 
transcendent. 

The  last  is  that  which  finds  the  Divine  Creator,  and 
Preserver,  and  Provider,  and  Governor,  as  also  His 
laws.  At  the  same  time,  while  He  Jias  an  ordinary 
mode  of  ox)eration  as  the  basis  of  action  and  calcula- 
tion to  finite  creatures,  yet  He  Himself  is  not  tied  to 
it.     For  reasons  sufficient,  effects  may  be  contemi:)lated 


l;U         CREATION   AND   ORIGIN   OF  THE   WORLD. 

and  extraordinary  means  used  to  their  accomplisliraeut 
— in  other  words,  miracles.  Miracle  is  not  necessarily 
contradictory  to  natural  law,  is  not  suspension  of  such 
law.  It  is  a  higher  power  coming  in,  affecting,  and 
modifying  laws  and  forces  to  a  new  result.  He  who 
knows  all,  who  sustains  all,  and  is  able  to  control  all, 
can  do  this  without  confusion. 


Duke  of  Argyle's  "  Reign  of  Law"  and  "  Unity  of  Nature." 
Harris's  "Self-Revelation  of  God." 
McCosh's  "Divine  Government." 
Cudwortli's  "  System  of  the  Universe." 
Dawson's  "Origin  of  the  World." 


CHAPTER  XL 

THE    DOCTRINE    OF   MAN. 

His  original  condition. — Divine  image,  its  Scriptural  meanings. — Unity 
of  the  race. — Possibilities  of  primeval  acquisition. — The  first  act  of 
transgression  and  fall. 

Man  in  his  Primeval  Condition. — ''God,"  said 
Kolieleth,  "hath  made  everything  beautiful  in  its 
time."  "God  said,"  is  the  record  of  Genesis,  "  let  us 
make  man  in  our  own  image,  after  our  likeness,  and 
let  them  have  dominion."  The  world,  in  its  Divine 
creation  and  order  of  preservation,  providence,  and 
overruling  control,  is  thus  contemplated  in  subordina- 
tion to  the  dominion  of  man.  Man,  really  in  God's 
image,  will  rule  in  accordance  with  God's  will  and 
purposes,  and  this  His  rule  will  be  a  blessing  to  all 
creation.  So  far  as  he  is  in  that  image,  morally  and 
spiritually,  will  this  result  be  secured.  The  scriptural 
account  of  man  follows  that  of  his  creation  ;  and  this 
in  its  relation  to  all  that  follows.  Some  of  the  particu- 
lars of  that  account  claim  attention. 

First,  then,  as  to  the  significance  of  this  expression, 
the  "  image  and  likeness  of  God."  The  first  of  these 
words,  oh-a,  describes  the  outline  of  an  object  as  cast 
by  its  shadow  ;  the  other,  m,  that  of  resemblance  in 
general.     The  former  the  image  of  God,  that  most  fre- 


136  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN. 

quently  used,  seems  intended  to  express  the  idea  of 
what  is  peculiar  to  humanity  as  distinct  from  or  con- 
trasted Avith  the  lower  orders  of  creation.  Sometimes 
it  is  as  in  its  Divine  ideal  as  before  the  fall  ;  sometimes 
only  in  its  actual  human  natural,  and  after  that  event ; 
but  always  as  thus  with  the  Divine  impress  of  essential 
human  nature.  In  the  first  two  chapters  of  Genesis, 
for  instance,  the  ijredominant  idea  of  the  Divine  image, 
as  resemblance,  seems  to  be  that  of  Divine  dominion  ; 
as  God  over  all,  so  man  under  Him  in  his  dominion  of 
the  lower  creation.  This,  too,  is  the  idea  of  the  New 
Testament  in  one  place  (1  Cor.  11  :  7),  where  man,  as 
the  image  of  God,  is  over  the  woman.  In  Gen.  9  :  0, 
however,  where  the  prohibition  against  murder  is 
based  upon  the  fact  of  this  Divine  image  in  the  vic- 
tim ;  and  in  James  3  :  9,  where  the  cursing  of  men,  in 
this  Divine  image,  is  reprobated,  it  seems  to  ])e  rather 
the  essential  fact  of  humanity  that  is  indicated,  and 
without  specific  reference  either  to  dominion  or  char- 
acter ;  while  in  Col.  3  :  10,  where  the  regenerate  man  is 
spoken  of  ' '  as  renewed  in  knowledge  after  the  image 
of  Him  that  created  Him  ;"  and  in  Eph.  4  :  23,  24, 
when  such  an  one  is  spoken  of  "  as  renewed  in  the  spirit 
of  his  mind  ;  as  putting  on  the  new  man,  which  after 
God  is  created  in  righteousness  and  true  holiness,"  the 
idea  manifestly  is  that  of  the  Divine  image  of  moral 
and  spiritual  resemblance.  These  three  classes  of  pas- 
sages bring  before  us,  it  may  be  said,  the  three  stages  and 
forms  of  human  experience  to  which  this  expression  is 
applicable  :    The   image   of   God  to  man  in  his  innQ_- 


THE    DOCTRINE   OF  MxVN.  137 

cence,  as  lie  was  created,  and  before  he  sinned.  The 
linage^l  God  in  liis  humanity,  marred  and  defaced  by 
sin,  but  not  hoj^elessly  obliterated  and  destroyed.  The 
image  of  Grod,  in  his  spiritual  restoration  and  trans- 
formation in  Christ,  and  through  the  power  of  His  re- 
newing S^^irit ;  this  latter  the  earnest  and  prophecy  of 
the  Divine  image  in  humanity  in  its  heavenly  excel- 
lence, glorified  with  Christ  in  His  heavenly  exaltation. 
Humanity  thus  spoken  of,  as  in  the  Divine  image,  in 
its  totality,  is  also  thus  implied  as  to  its  particulars — 
in  its  bodily,  its  vitalized  and  spiritual  characteristics. 
Man's  body,  like  that  of  other  creatures,  certainly 
after  the  fall,  is  subject  to  the  law  of  change  and  dis- 
solution. Evidently  had  there  been  no  such  fall,  the 
implication  was  that  of  continued  bodily  existence, 
but  nothing  of  its  particulars  ;  the  transition  from  the 
natural  to  the  spiritual  body,  not  by  death,  but  in 
some  other  way.  Besides  the  body,  is  mention  made 
of  the  soul,  ^d:,  as  an  organific  principle,  sometimes 
very  nearly  the  equivalent  of  life,  but  of  a  life  not 
necessarily  destroyed  by  bodily  death.  Sometimes, 
again,  soul  is  very  nearly,  if  not  quite,  the  equivalent 
of  spirit,  nn,  the  spiritual  being  in  personality.  And 
then,  further,  the  word  spirit  describes  this  last  idea  of 
personality,  and  more  specifically.  Soul  and  spirit  seem 
to  be  interchanged  in  the  Old  Testament  poetic  paral- 
lelism, as  they  are  sometimes  in  the  New  Testament. 
If  there  be  any  difference  in  such  cases,  it  is  that  soul,  as 
in  modern  j^sychology,  indicares  connection  with  organ- 
ism, spirit  as  dwelling  in  the  body.     SjDirit  itself  is  not 


138  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN. 

contemplated  as  necessarily  in  such  relation.  In  1  Thess. 
5:23  the  three,  "body,  soul,  and  spirit,''  are  spoken 
of  together  as  the  objects  of  the  whole  sanctification 
prayed  for  by  the  apostle.  In  Heb.  4  :  12  "  soul  and 
spirit"  are  spoken  of  in  connection  with  the  thoughts 
and  intents  of  the  heart,  and  these  as  related  to  bodily 
organism.  Body  and  spirit  are  thus  clearly  distin- 
guished. Soul  is  connected  ordinarily  with  body,  as 
also  with  spirit.  In  this  idea  of  spirit,  siDiritual  per- 
sonality is  usually  the  imx)lication  of  continued  exist- 
ence ;  and  the  glorified  body  and  sanctified  soul  and 
spirit  are  contemplated  as  the  final  condition  of  the 
redeemed  race — every  part  of  human  nature  delivered 
from  the  eft'ects  of  evil  and  sin — ^in  Christ  positively 
exalted  and  glorified. 

Implied  in  these  j)^rticula]\s  has  been  that  of  the 
nnity  of  the  race — the  fact  of  its  unity  of  origin  as  con- 
trasted with  the  various  characteristics  of  dilfei'ent  jyeo- 
ples  and  nations  at  the  present  time.  This,  at  one 
time  a  sharply  contested  point  of  disjDute,  has  lost 
much  of  its  interest.  In  the  later  issue  of  the  deriva- 
tion of  man  from  a  lower  order  of  organic  being,  that 
of  his  unity  has  been  accepted  on  both  sides.  This  is 
manifestly  the  implication  of  Scripture.  Men  are 
spoken  of  as  having  a  common  nature,  as  of  a  common 
origin.  "  God,"  says  the  apostle,  "  hath  made  of  one 
blood  all  nations  of  men  to  dwell  on  the  face  of  the 
earth."  Blood  is,  perhaps,  not  critically  correct  ;  but 
nature,  or  something  to  that  efi'ect,  needs  to  be  sup- 
I)lied.     The  race  fell  in  one  man  ;  by  one  man  is  re- 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN.  139 

deemed.     Its  unity  is  the  base  of  all  such  representa- 
tions. 

Just  here  a  deeply  interesting  question  presents 
itself,  one  a  subject  of  much  discussion  and  specula- 
tion—that of  man's  possibilities  of  knowledge  and  of 
acquisition,  as  a  being  thus  called  into  existence  ;  and 
with  this  that  of  the  possibility  of  a  primitive  revela- 
tion. Whether  created  or  evolved  from  a  lower  organ- 
ism, this  question  presents  itself.  The  rational  and 
moral  being,  however  he  came,  when  he  came,  encoun- 
tered this  problem.  How,  and  how  far,  as  such  being, 
can  he  know  and  be  receptive  of  knowledge  ?  Regard- 
ing him  as  created,  we  may  briefly  examine  this  ques- 
tion. How,  for  instance,  with  such  a  being  as  to  lan- 
guage ?  The  reply  to  this  will  be  substantially  the 
same  as  to  other  acquisitions. 

Here  mere  natural  analogies  fail.  And  the  difficul- 
ties urged  from  such  analogies  ignore  the  fact  that  a 
created  man,  as  divinely  called  into  existence,  is  not  a 
natural,  but  a  supernatural  phenomenon.  So,  too, 
with  a  rational  nature  communicated  to  one  of  the 
higher  forms  of  brute  existence.*  Such  a  man  would 
not  be  an  infant  as  to  his  digestive,  his  muscular,  or 
his  nervous  system.  He  would  not  be  so  in  his  intel- 
lectual, his  emotional,  his  volitional  nature.  Just  as 
such  a  one  would  move,  and  walk,  and  take  food, 
and  take  cognizance  of  surrounding  objects,  so  would 

*  Nature,  as  from  nascor  nattis,  that  which  in  some  manner  is  born, 
or  from  <^vcig  (f>vu,  that  which  grows  or  has  grown,  does  not  describe 
what  is  liere  spoken  of. 


14U  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN. 

he  make  signs,  iind  give  sounds,  expressive  of  ideas, 
especially  as  not  alone,  but,  as  like  the  created  man,  with 
a  companion  —this  companion,  being  no  less  necessary 
to  the  evolved  man,  if  his  race  is  to  be  perpetuated. 
The  beginnings  vrouM,  of  course,  be  imperfect ;  but 
the  progress  would  be  rapid.  In  such  case  there  would 
be  a  power  and  rapidity  of  movement,  in  all  lines  of 
capacity  and  acquisition,  of  which  we  have  no  anal- 
ogous instances.  Given  the  fact  of  such  a  being,  or 
two  such  beings,  in  daily  association  ;  and  as  would  be 
the  necessity,  so  would  be  the  development  of  caiDacity, 
both  of  thought,  and  its  expression  in  word  or  in 
action.  All  that  we  can  say  with  certainty  is,  that  as 
the  exigency  came,  so  the  sign  or  the  sound  needing  to 
constitute  expression  would  come  along  with  it.  Lan- 
guage, as  thus  the  exxoression  and  outcome  of  thought, 
would  increase  and  enlarge  its  means  of  exj)ression. 
Aiding  this  would  be  any  specific  Divine  communi- 
cations of  which  he  might  be  in  the  reception.  How 
exactly  they  were  made,  how  ' '  Eloliim  said, ' '  we  are 
not  specifically  told.  God  is  described  as  speaking,  as 
making  Himself  intelligible  to  man  ;  and  man,  it  is 
implied,  understood  the  Divine  communication.  The 
extreme  of  naturalism,  which  would  construe  the  first 
man  as  a  heli^less  infant,  is  as  absurd  as  that  of  some 
of  the  old  theologians,  who  found  him  in  full  posses- 
sion of  all  the  acquisitions  of  the  subsequent  race. 
Between  these  is  the  position  described  in  Genesis  :  a 
being  capable  of  acquiring  knowledge,  and  becoming 
more  intelligent,  as  intelligence  was  needed ;  of  thus 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN.  14:1 

coming  into  commnnication  with  the  workl  around,  as 
with  his  Maker  ;  and,  in  tliat  knowledge,  capable  of 
moral  accountability — of  moral  excellence  or  its  fail- 
ure. Thus  we  find  him  in  Genesis,  with  language,  the 
religious  institution  of  the  Sabbath,  the  moral  and 
social  of  the  marriage  relation,  bodily  employment,  in 
keeping  the  garden,  as  a  condition  of  healthful  physi- 
cal existence.  And  thus  far,  in  the  language  of  his 
Divine  Creator,  very  good. 

The  First  Transgression  and  Fall. — The  transi- 
tion from  the  last  topic  is  natural :  that  of  man  in 
Eden,  to  the  first  transgression  and  its  effects.  This 
last  has  its  difficulties  :  first,  as  to  interpretation  ;  sec- 
ond, as  to  its  effects  upon  the  man  himself,  and 
through  him  upon  his  posterity.  Just  here  we  look 
at  the  first,  its  interpretation. 

These  are  threefold  :  the  allegorical,  the  mythical, 
and  the  literal.  The  difficulty  with  the  first  two  is  the 
variety  of  meanings  extracted  by  them  from  the  nar- 
rative, and  their  conflicting  character.  That  which 
proves  everything  proves  nothing.  The  difficulty  with 
the  literal  is  mainly  with  the  serpent,  and  the  character 
of  the  trees  and  their  fruit.  These,  however,  are  not 
insuperable.  It  is  to  be  said,  moreover,  that  the 
human  part,  the  moral  and  spiritual  transactions, 
whether  clothed  in  figure  or  not,  are  clear  and  unmis- 
takable as  to  their  meaning — to  all  intents  and  pur- 
poses may  be  treated  as  literalities.  The  human 
agents  were  placed  upon  trial ;  they  were  temi:)ted,  dis- 
obeyed,   and  fell ;   they  were  subjected  to  penalty. 


142  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN. 

The  literalities    of  that  penalty  are   unquestionable. 
Some  of  these  we  examine.'^ 

One  of  these  is  the  fact  which  gives  significance  to 
the  whole  :  that  of  trial,  test  of  obedience  and  char- 
acter, so  far  as  formed,  to  its  full  formation,  moral 
vigor  and  security.  The  question  is  often  asked.  Why 
evil  in  the  universe  ?  Could  not  God  have  prevented 
it  ?  Undoubted!}^  He  could,  confining  the  world  of 
creation  to  non-moral  and  non-accountable  beings. 
Just  as  pain,  the  protective  of  animal  organism,  could 
have  been  excluded  in  a  world  of  mere  i)hysical  forces 
or  of  vegetable  organisms.  But  as  in  the  animal  or- 
ganism is  the  necessity  of  pain,  so  in  the  moral  is  the 
necessity  of  personal  agency  ;  and  in  this  fact  of  finite 
moral  agency  and  its  exercise,  is  the  230ssibility  of  fail- 
ure and  deviation  from  right.  To  be,  it  must  exercise 
itself  ;  and  in  such  exercise  is  trial  and  probation. 
Innocence  is  not  excellence,  the  strength  and  excel- 
lence of  formed  character.  The  one  is  the  weakness  of 
the  infant  ;  the  other,  the  vigor,  and  power,  and  secu- 
rity of  the  full-grown  man.  Such  power  and  vigor  only 
come,  so  far  as  we  can  see,  through  moral  growth 
under  test  and  probation.     The  test  of  Eden  consti- 

*  There  is  in  this  account,  literally  :  (a)  The  Divine  being,  Elohim. 
(b)  The  human  being,  Adam  and  the  woman,  (c)  The  tempter  and  the 
temptation,  (d)  The  result  of  tlie  act  of  yielding.  Act  and  its  results. 
(e)  These  results  :  death,  woman's  condition,  conflict  of  seeds. 

These  open  to  question,  as  figurative  :  (a)  Was  it  a  literal  serpent  ? 
(b)  Was  it  a  literal  serpent  only  ?  (c)  Did  Elohim  or  the  serpent  speak 
in  words  ?  (d)  Were  the  effects  physical  only  through  the  moral  V  (<) 
Or  were  the  effects  moral  through  tlie  physical  ?  (/)  Or  did  both  of 
these  act  co  instantaneously  ? 


THE  DOCTRINE   OP  MAN.  143 

tuted  the  divinely  given  opportunity,  with  its  necessary 
risks  for  such  growth  and  maturity.  It  was  the  part 
of  Divine  wisdom  and  compassion,  even  after  faihire, 
to  bring  in  remedial  agencies  ;  to  afford  means  by 
which  a  fallen  might  become  a  redeemed  race.  But  to 
the  formation  of  character,  spiritual  vigor,  moral  ele- 
vation, strength  and  security,  such  probation  would 
seem  to  have  been  a  necessity. 

That  test  was  simple,  and  mercifully  arranged  as  to 
its  particulars.  A  certain  act  was  forbidden  upon  the 
authoritative  word  of  the  Divine  Creator  and  Benefac- 
tor. The  consequences  of  disobedience  were  clearly 
made  known,  as  the  blessing  of  its  opposite  implied. 
It  was  thus  a  test  of  loyalty,  of  faith  in  the  Divine 
word  and  character  ;  and  it  contained  an  assurance  of 
welfare  in  one  direction,  as  of  disaster  in  the  other. 
To  forbear  was  obedience  and  life  ;  to  eat  was  dis- 
obedience and  death— was  resistance  and  disregard  as 
to  the  will  of  the  heavenly  Sovereign  and  Benefactor. 

The  temptation,  as  it  came,  was  from  without,  herein 
mitigating  the  nature  of  the  offence.  Its  form  was 
twofold.  First,  to  self-exaltation  and  personal  bene- 
fit:  "  Ye  shall  be  as  God."  Second,  to  disbelief,  want 
of  faith  in  the  truth  of  God  :  "  God  doth  know  that 
in  eating  you  will  not  be  injured,  but  rather  exalted 
and  benefited;  has  said  to  you  what  is  not  true." 
This  first  temptation,  as  are  all  subsequent  in  their 
ultimate  analysis,  was  a  lie,  a  slander  against  God. 
And  faith,  not  in  God,  but  in  the  devil,  the  source  of 
the  disobedient  act  and  all  its  consequences.     Morally 


144  THE   DOCTRINE  OF  MAN. 

and  spiritually,  the  fall  took  place  wlien  God  was  dis- 
believed and  the  tempter  trusted.  The  actual  eating 
was  the  outward  and  visible  sign  of  the  fall  as  already, 
inwardly  and  spiritually,  accomplished.  Of  course, 
all  the  moral  and  spiritual  effects  were  heightened  as 
this  inward  state  found,  in  the  act,  its  outward  expres- 
sion. 

What  was  its  result  ?  Was  it  entirely  moral  and 
spiritual,  in  its  deranging  and  destructive  effects,  from 
within  outward,  affecting  the  body,  and  thus  working 
to  its  corruptibility  and  mortality  ?  Or  was  it  entirely 
bodily,  poisoning  the  body,  and  from  without  inward 
depraving,  through  the  body,  the  spiritual  nature  ? 
Or  was  it  both  of  these  combined,  the  spirit  dej)raved 
and  the  body  poisoned  in  one  and  the  same  act  of 
transgression  ?  These  questions  are  not  specifically 
answered.  Manifestly  the  predominant  feature  and 
result  is  the  spiritual  and  moral,  the  sinful  act.  De- 
rangement and  moral  death  beginning,  will  soon  dam- 
age and  deprave  the  body.  The  divinely  announced 
result  includes  both — disobedience,  moral  defection, 
bodily  dissolution,  and  mortality. 

That  divinely  announced  result,  both  in  its  matter 
and  order,  is  deeply  significant.  While  the  human 
offenders  are  questioned  and  their  extenuation  heard, 
there  is  no  such  questioning,  no  such  extenuation  Avith 
the  tempter.  He  is  condemned  in  his  instrument  as 
he  is  himself,  and  eventually  to  a  complete  overthrow. 
The  woman,  as  first  in  the  transgression,  is  put  in  sub- 
jection to  the  man  ;  is  to  bring  forth  in  pain  and  sor- 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF  MAN.  145 

row,  and  yet  is  to  bring  forth  eventually  tlie  Deliverer, 
The  man  is  condemned  to  labor  as  the  condition  of 
existence  ;  and,  with  the  woman,  as  in  him  and  all  his 
posterity,  becomes  subject  to  bodily  mortality.  In  the 
sentence,  as  we  have  seen,  there  is  alleviation.  Wom- 
an's suffering  becomes  the  medium  to  the  coming 
of  the  Deliverer  ;  man's  toil  is  really  a  ]protective 
against  various  temptations  to  evil.  And,  in  the  in- 
timation of  the  victorious  conqueror  of  the  evil  one, 
was  wrapped  uj)  the  hope  of  a  coming  restoration. 

With  only  one  other  specific  point  are  we  just  here 
occu]3ied  :  the  i)ersonality  of  the  tempter.  The  serpent 
is  spoken  of,  and  yet  allusions  in  the  New  Testament 
to  this  serpent  indicate  something  more  than  the  literal 
serpent :  the  presence,  indeed,  of  the  great  enemy. 
How,  it  is  asked,  can  this  be  literal  ?  Which  is  to  be 
understood  ?  Perhaps  the  best  reply  would  be,  both. 
If,  as  the  apostle  tells  us,  Satan  can  transform  himself 
into  an  angel  of  light,  as  he  probably  transformed 
himself  into  man,  when  he  tempted  our  blessed  Lord, 
he  could  into  a  serpent,  with  the  first  man.  And  the 
subsequent  conflict  of  the  literal  seed  of  the  woman 
and  the  seed  of  the  literal  serpent  would  be  part  of  the 
result  accomiDanying  the  si^iritual  conflict ;  to  termi- 
nate in  the  final  victory  of  the  spiritual  seed  in  a 
higher  sphere  of  operation.  Evidently  this  latter  is 
the  predominant  one  :  the  overthrow  of  all  enemies, 
the  final  triumph  of  the  seed  of  the  woman,  in  His  final 
heavenly  exaltation. 

Connected  with  this    subject    questions    are   often 


146  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN. 

asked,  and  to  wliich,  perliaps,  only  partial  rei)lies  can 
be  suggested. 

One  of  these  is  as  to  the  possible  opposite  result 
of  the  trial — successful  probation — to  the  first  man. 
Would  probation  have  terminated  there  ;  and  if  so, 
how  would  his  posterity  have  been  affected  ?  As  in  cer- 
tain respects  they  fell  in  him,  so  if  he  had  stood,  would 
they  have  stood  in  him — in  other  words,  have  needed  no 
probation  ?  Scripture  does  not  specifically  raise,  and 
therefore  does  not  answer  this  question.  The  first  man 
may  have  needed  further  trial  ;  and  his  posterity,  even 
if  he  had  been  successful,  and  they  enjoying  its  advan- 
tages, might  have  still  needed  further  personal  trial  to 
the  formation  of  personal  character. 

Another  of  these  questions  is  as  to  the  effect  of  that 
trial  as  successful  both  with  the  first  man  and  the  race, 
his  posterity.  Would  the  result  have  been  bodily  im- 
mortality, the  non- entrance  of  bodily  death  in  human 
experience  1  Man's  bodily  nature,  it  is  urged,  is  consti- 
tutionally mortal,  comes  under  the  law  of  organic  dis- 
solution. To  this  three  replies  have  been  made : 
First,  man's  bodily  nature  is  so,  as  that  of  a  sinful 
being.  How,  if  sinless,  is  the  j)oint  of  inquiry  ?  Sec- 
ond, we  have  only  to  sujDpose  a  different  physical 
organism,  one  in  which  the  supply  is  exactly  adajoted 
to  the  demand  of  the  system,  so  as  to  go  on  forever, 
and  the  difficulty  is  removed.  Third,  earthly  exist- 
ence with  the  race,  as  with  two  exceptional  cases,  Enoch 
and  Elijah,  might  terminate,  not  in  bodily  death,  but 
in  translation,  and  the  transformation  needed  for  an- 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF  MAN.  147 

otlier  state  of  existence.  There  was  the  implied  assur- 
ance of  continued  existence  to  obedience  ;  but  nothing 
as  to  its  localities  and  conditions.  Evidently  the  idea 
of  perpetuated  life,  the  possibility  of  life  immortal,  is 
thus  implied  in  the  record.  This  "plank  from  the 
wreck  of  Paradise' '  thus  survived  to  men's  minds  as  a 
possibility  of  human  experience. 

So,  again,  the  further  question  has  been  asked  : 
Was  not  the  fall,  and  the  knowledge  in  personal  ex- 
perience of  good  and  evil,  a  stage,  and  a  necessary  one, 
to  a  higher  condition  ?  As  "  God  causes  the  wrath  of 
man  to  praise  Him,"  so  did  He  not,  in  this  case,  the 
malignity  of  Satan  1  The  reply  to  this  is,  that  as,  in 
the  blessed  angels  and  in  the  humanity  of  our  blessed 
Lord,  there  was  no  knowledge  in  personal  experience 
of  evil,  for  full  and  successful  trial,  and  the  highest 
excellence  following,  so  we  cannot  affirm  any  such 
necessity  in  the  case  of  the  first  man.  Sin  is  not  a 
God-originated  thing  or  agency.  He  controls  and 
overrules  it,  as  originating  with  His  finite  creatures  ; 
but  hates  and  condemns  it.  How  He  would  have  done 
with  man  sinless  we  cannot  fully  say  ;  but  we  can  say 
He  would  have  blessed  him,  and  blessed  him  more 
highly,  than  as  brought  under  the  power  of  sin. 
While,  therefore,  it  cannot  be  said  that  man's  fall  was 
a  needed  step  to  his  moral  and  spiritual  elevation,  we 
may  say  it  afforded  opportunity  for  the  most  con- 
spicuous manifestation  and  exercise  of  Divine  love  and 
wisdom,  to  the  deliverance  of  men  from  the  effects  and 
consequences  of  his  transgression,  and  thus  for  his 


148  THE   DOCTRINE   OF  MAN. 

moral  and  spiritual  elevation.  But  that  such  eleva- 
tion could  not  have  been  without  sin  is  beyond  our 
cajDacity  of  affirmation.  As  it  was,  in  the  actual  fact, 
"where  sin  abounded,  grace  superabounded. "  And 
thus,  as  sin  reigned  unto  death,  so  grace,  in  the  Divine 
work  and  righteousness,  reigned  unto  eternal  life. 
God  thus  caused,  alike,  the  malignity  of  Satan  and  the 
sin  of  man  to  show  forth  His  praise. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


THE   DOCTRIlSrE    OF   SIJST. 


Distinction  of  Original  and  Actual. — The  first  original  sin. — Ambiguity 
of  the  terms  employed  to  describe  it. — Scripture  assertion  of  man's 
sinfulness. — What  the  nature  of  this,  and  its  connection  with  the  sin 
of  the  first  man. — Theories  of  such  connection. 

In  an  ideal  world  there  would  be  no  place  for  this 
topic.  In  the  actual  it  meets  ns  everywhere  ;  not  only 
in  systems  of  theology,  but  in  every-day  life  ;  not  only 
in  Christianity,  but  in  all  forms  of  religion  ;  in  the 
struggles  of  human  feeling,  as  in  the  confessions  and 
speculations  of  human  science  and  philosoj^hy.  Such 
fact,  deeply  significant  in  itself,  becomes  still  more  so  as 
in  its  connection  with  the  teaching  of  Old  and  New  Tes- 
tament revelation.  This  teaching  is  that  of  sin  as  in 
some  manner,  either  in  act  or  tendency,  an  inheritance, 
an  experience  common  to  the  race.  Man  is  described  as 
a  sinful  being.  The  two  great  questions  of  Christian 
theology  with  reference  to  it  are,  what  is  this  sin  ?  how 
can  it  be  overcome  and  eradicated  ?  To  understand  the 
remedy  we  must  know  the  evil.  As  we  see  the  real  char- 
acter of  this  evil,  we  see  the  necessity,  and  to  some  de- 
gree what  must  be  the  character  of  the  effective  remedy. 
We  begin  with  the  first,  sin. 

Here,  in  the  beginning,  we  encounter  the  distinction 


150  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  SIN. 

of  original  and  actual  sin.  With  the  former  there  are 
many  difficulties.  With  the  latter,  comparatively  few. 
Actual  sin,  sin  contemplated  as  an  act,  is  deviation,  in 
the  free  movement  of  a  moral  agent,  by  commission  or 
omission  from  the  Divine  law  ;  wrong-doing,  or  fail- 
ure of  right-doing  as  to  God,  the  Supreme  Ruler  and 
Lawgiver.  Sin  is  offence  against  Divine  law,  as  is 
crime  against  that  which  is  human.  Crimes  thus  may 
not  be  sins,  and  sins  may  not  be  crimes.  It  was  no 
crime  for  man  and  wife,  under  Roman  law,  to  sepa- 
rate and  seek  new  partners  ;  but  it  was  sin.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  was  a  crime  for  a  Roman  soldier  to  re- 
fuse to  do  religious  homage  to  the  effigy  of  Csesar  ; 
but  it  w^as  not  sin.  Both  of  these  words  imply  a  law 
given  by  a  rightful  authority,  as  also  the  voluntary 
agency  of  those  living  under  it.  Transgression  of  the 
Divine  law  is  specially  described  as  sin.  Such  sin  in 
other  relations  may  be  and  usually  is  described  by 
other  terms — immorality,  villainy,  dishonesty.  Con- 
templated Godward,  they  are  sins. 

Prior,  however,  to  the  consideration  of  actual  sins  is 
usually  that  which  is  called  original.  The  nomen- 
clature here  is  not  by  any  means  a  happy  one  ;  and  it 
is  to  be  regretted  that  the  idea  of  Zwingle,  as  to  the 
use*  of  some  other  term,  had  not  been  adopted  in  the 
confessions  of  the  Reformation.  What  is  really  meant 
could  have  been  better  expressed  by  the  word  deprav- 
ity, corruption,  or  tendency  to  sin  of  human  nature, 
and  the  present  entanglement  and  confusion  avoided. 
Sin,  which  is  a  word  properly  descriptive  of  a  volun- 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF  SIN.  151 

tary  criminal  act,  is  thus  used  to  describe  the  in- 
voluntary state  or  condition  of  the  race,  as  of  the 
agent  prior  to  his  cai)acity  of  voluntary  action.  So,  in 
the  same  manner,  guilt,  which  properly  describes  the 
condition  into  which  a  voluntary  agent  brings  himself 
by  a  criminal  act,  is  used  to  describe  the  state  or  condi- 
tion of  others  by  such  act  affected.  Original  sin, 
meaning  by  this  the  condition  in  which  men  are  by 
the  sin  of  the  first  man,  is  usually  spoken  of  as  preced- 
ing actual  sin.  And  yet  it  was  an  actual  sin  of  the 
first  man  that  produced  it.  Strictly  speaking,  the 
original  sin,  peccatum  originans,  was  that  of  the  first 
man.  The  effect  of  this  is  the  depravity,  the  corrujD- 
tion,  the  universal  race  tendency  to  follow  in  his  foot- 
steps. This,  described  as  peccatum  originatuin,  origi- 
7US,  or  or/'ginale,  always  involves  a  modification  of 
the  sense  of  peccatum.  In  the  first,  describing  the 
offence  of  the  first  man,  it  means  a  voluntary  criminal 
act  ;  in  the  second,  a  naturally  depraved  state  or  dis- 
position. Refusal  or  failure  to  recognize  this  distinc- 
tion has  been  the  prolific  source  of  confusion  and  em- 
bittered controversy. 

The  two  points,  thus  included  in  this  subject  of  race 
dex^ravity,  or,  as  usually  described,  original  sin,  are, 
first,  the  fact  as  to  its  existence  and  nature  ;  second, 
its  connection  with  the  sin  and  fall  of  the  first  man. 
This  fact  itself  comes  out  in  a  twofold  form.  First,  in 
those  passages  of  Scripture  and  their  implications  in 
which  the  actual  condition  of  the  race  is  described. 
Distinction  here  is  not  specifically  made  between  actual 


152  THE  DOCTRINE   OF   81N. 

sin  and  tlie  race  tendency  to  its  commission.  But 
the  point  of  significance  is  the  iiniversality  of  sin  both 
in  space  and  time  ;  its  manifestation  under  variety  of 
times  and  circumstances  ;  its  manifoldness  of  ox)era- 
tion,  and  yet,  in  all,  its  essential  unity  of  character, 
Man  is  contemplated  as  a  sinful  being.  If  this  is  not 
a  part  of  his  nature,  in  that  nature  as  related  to  its 
surroundings,  it  is  called  into  existence.  Just  as  dis- 
eases in  certain  families,  through  several  generations, 
indicate  hereditary  tendency  in  such  families,  so  this 
disease  of  depravity  in  the  family  of  the  race,  in  all  its 
generations  and  under  all  conditions  and  circum- 
stances, indicates  no  less  clearly  a  law  of  moral  and 
spiritual  heredity  as  its  natural  explanation.  "All," 
says  the  apostle,  ' '  have  sinned  and  come  short  of  the 
glory  of  God."  Whether  regarded  as  a  result  and 
proof  of  human  dej^ravity,  or  simply  as  the  outworking 
of  human  nature,  the  fact  is  substantially  the  same. 
Most  startling  are  some  of  the  illustrations.  The 
first  of  human  born  becomes  a  murderer.  The  earth,  in 
the  course  of  time,  becomes  so  filled  with  violence,  as 
to  bring  ujDon  its  guilty  inhabitants  a  flood  of  destruc- 
tion. The  confusion  of  Babel,  not  long  after  the  flood, 
is  the  efi'ect  of  disobedience  to  the  Divine  will.  In  the 
course  of  a  few  generations,  the  spread  of  idolatry  and 
polytheism  and  their  abominations  necessitate  the  call 
of  Abraham  and  his  family,  as  witnesses  of  the  livino; 
God,  and  as  protesting  against  the  i)ollutions  and  cruel- 
ties of  heathenism.  Even  among  these  chosen  people, 
sin  and  idolatry  are  constantly  breaking  forth,  and 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF  SIN.  153 

brought  under  Divine  reproof  and  punishment.  Their 
history  is  one  long  record  of  Divine  blessings  pervert- 
ed, as  of  Divine  penalties  inflicted.  Even  the  best 
specimens  of  the  faithful,  how  painful  the  record,  how 
clear  the  confession  from  them  of  failure  and  sin  !  It 
is  the  race  unity  of  sin  that  is  thus  exhibited  ;  of 
something  in  human  nature,  left  to  itself,  going  into 
sin  ;  even,  in  spite  of  Divine  grace,  falling  into  its 
commission. 

So,  too,  the  world  of  men  is  contemplated  as  need- 
ing salvation  ;  and  that  as  divinely  provided  to  meet, 
not  a  partial,  but  a  universally  existing  race  neces- 
sity. The  children  of  a  sinful  progenitor  are  thus 
participants  with  him  of  sin  ;  in  the  nature,  which 
thus  finds  expression.  What  is  involved  in  such 
participation  we  examine  further  on.  Just  here  we 
note  the  fact  of  heredity  in  natural  disposition  or 
constitution :  sinful,  dying  parents,  giving  birth  to 
mortal  and  sin-inclined  children  ;  giving  them  the  in- 
heritance of  mortal  bodies,  of  inward  corrupt  and 
depraved  tendencies. 

Connected  scripturally  with  this  fact  of  the  actual 
condition  of  the  race,  and  i:)ointing  to  something  in  its 
nature  as  explanatory  of  its  existence,  are  scriptural 
statements  as  to  its  connection  with  the  sin  of  the  first 
man.  "  As  in  Adam,"  says  the  apostle,  "  all  die,  so  in 
Christ  shall  all  be  made  alive."  Christ's  life,  imjiart- 
ed  to  the  race,  is  not  merely  that  of  l)odily  life.  Pre- 
ceding this,  and  a  ^preparative  condition  to  it,  is  Christ's 
moral  and  spiritual  life  to  men  morally  and  spiritually 


154  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  SIN. 

dead,  thus  in  this  condition,  through  connection  with 
the  first  man.  So,  too,  in  the  parallel  of  the  fifth 
chapter  of  Romans,  the  two  great  heads  of  the  race 
are  set  over  against  each  other— the  one  as  bringing  in 
sin  and  death,  the  other  as  bringing  grace  and  life  to 
the  race.  It  is  the  race  unity  in  each  of  these,  its  re- 
spective heads,  that  is  thus  manifestly  contemplated. 
And  we  thus  have  the  race  inheritance  of  a  sin-dis- 
posed nature.  In  the  light  of  such  fact  we  read  the 
confession  of  the  i^salmist  (Ps.  51  :  5),  the  language  of 
Job  14  :  4,  the  conflict  described  in  Rom.  7  :  5-25,  as  to 
the  indwelling  power  of  the  depraved  nature  ;  and  the 
language  of  our  blessed  Lord  as  to  the  need  of  spirit 
birth  to  the  naturally  born,  for  admission  to  the  king- 
dom of  God. 

Thus  far  there  has  been  little  of  serious  difference  as 
to  the  fact  of  man  as  a  sinful  being — in  other  words, 
human  depravity,  tendency  to  sin,  going  out,  as  human 
nature  is  left  to  itself,  into  actual  sin,  as  moral  capac- 
ity for  such  sin  is  reached.  In  this  respect,  and  in 
some  way  or  other,  this  fact  of  race  connection  and 
race  inheritance,  of  the  fallen  nature  of  the  first 
man,  has  been  generally  accepted.  The  manner  of 
that  connection,  what  it  involves  in  the  moral  condi- 
tion of  the  race,  and  as  to  man's  standing,  under  the 
Divine  law,  prior  to  actual  sin,  has  been  that  of  con- 
troversy. Without  going  into  the  details  and  stages 
of  this  controversy,  it  will  be  sufficient  to  indicate 
the  main  point  of  interest  in  it — that  of  the  moral  and 
legal  standing  of  the  race,  as  of  each  member  of  it 


THE  DOCTRINE   OF   SIN.  155 

prior  to  actual  sin,  say  that  of  tlie  new-born  infant, 
through,  race  connection,  and  from  this  first  sin. 
Birth  connection,  natural  connection,  is  of  course  in- 
volved. But  in  this  what  is  additionally  included  ? 
Two  theories — the  participation  theory  of  Augustine 
and  the  imputative  theory  of  Anselm,  and  later  scho- 
lastic and  reformed  theologians  answered  it,  by  the 
affirmation  of  personal  guilt,  and  consequently  a  posi- 
tive Divine  sentence  of  condemnation.  The  first  of 
these  theories,  under  that  of  realism,  affirmed  the  pres- 
ence of  the  race  in  the  person  and  act  of  their  progeni- 
tor ;  and,  therefore,  their  participation  in  the  conse- 
quences of  this  common  act — personal  guilt  and  con- 
demnation. The  other  found  them  thus  present  and 
X)articipant,  not  in  person,  but  in  that  of  their  divinely 
appointed  representative,  the  first  man,  and  coming  to 
them  in  the  way  of  imputation.  In  both  cases  the 
result  was  the  same  :  the  race,  each  member  of  the 
race,  criminally  guilty  of  the  first  sin,  and,  therefore, 
under  sentence  of  Divine  condemnation. 

Connected  with  these,  and  ending  in  the  same  con- 
clusion, was  that  of  the  participation  personally  in  the 
sin  of  the  first  man,  not  by  concurrent  act,  as  with 
Augustine,  not  in  the  act  of  the  representative,  as  with 
the  later  view,  but  in  the  malignity  of  the  inherited 
nature  itself,  which,  wanting  in  love  to  God  and  all 
good,  and  full  of  positive  tendencies  to  evil,  was  itself 
sin,  and  under  the  divinely  condemning  sentence. 
Here  the  transition  from  the  idea  of  depravity,  a 
state,  to  that  of  sin,  an  act ;  from  that  of  guilt  as  the 


156  THE  DOCTRINE   OF  SIK 

effect  of  personal  criminality,  to  guilt  as  the  effect  of 
the  criminality  of  others,  was  made  without  distinct 
recognition.  Sin,  an  act,  was  made  to  describe  the 
effect  of  a  depraved  and  fallen  condition  ;  and  guilt, 
in  the  sense  of  criminality,  was  used  to  describe  the 
effect,  in  others,  of  such  criminality.  In  all  these 
theories  the  personal  agent,  j)rior  to  any  act  or  agency 
of  his  own,  and  even  to  his  capacity  of  agency  or  of 
action,  was  found  guilty,  criminally  so,  of  sin,  an  act, 
and  legally  under  Divine  sentence  as  to  its  conse- 
quences. Children,  in  the  language  of  Scripture,  ' '  an 
heritage  of  the  Lord,"  who  "  are  not  able  to  discern 
good  or  evil,"  are  thus  made  not  only  to  know  evil,  but 
to  be  criminal  participants  in  it,  and  under  its  Divine 
sentence  of  doom. 

This,  very  naturally,  led  to  the  sacramental  remedy. 
For  dying  infants  there  could  be  no  other.  The  sin 
and  its  doom,  criminally  incurred,  not  by  their  own 
act,  was,  in  the  same  manner,  without  their  act  or 
knowledge,  removed.  And,  as  one  sacrament  thus  be- 
came debased  from  its  original  high  moral  and  spiritual 
significance  into  a  mere  fetich,  so,  in  due  time,  the  other 
came  to  be  regarded  and  treated  as  of  similar  char- 
acter. Where  sin  is  looked  upon  as  a  physical  thing, 
it  will  be  treated,  and  its  cure  sought  with  23hysical 
remedies. 

Over  against  this  affirmation  of  race  criminality  and 
condemnation  from  the  first  sin  is  that  of  its  extreme 
opposite,  what  has  been  called  the  theory  of  example. 
Men  are  affected  by  Adam's  sin  through  the  tempta- 


THE   DOCTRmE   OF   SIN.  157 

tion  of  his  examx^le.  Just  so  far  as  they  are  affected 
by  that  example,  and  follow  it,  just  so  far  are  they  par- 
ticipants of  his  fall  and  its  consequences.  This  ignores 
the  fact  of  prior  participation  in  these  consequences  in 
the  result  of  mortality,  and  really  makes  all  connec- 
tion, not  that  of  race  or  nature,  but  of  actual  offence. 
Actual  sin  is  all  that  we  find  in  these  respects  in  the 
human  race  ;  in  human  failure  and  transgression.  We 
are  as  was  the  lirst  man.  He  sinned  and  fell.  We  sin 
and  fall.  Adam  injured  himself  ;  we  injure  ourselves  ; 
are  really  affected  only  by  his  examj)le.  Here,  mani- 
festly, there  is  defect  of  scriptural  truth  and  scriptural 
statement,  as  in  the  previous  theories  there  are  super- 
fluities. While,  in  one  direction,  man  is  scripturally 
held  accountable  only  for  his  own  actions,  in  another 
he  is  exhibited  as  acting  from  the  impulses  of  a  de- 
praved and  fallen  nature.  He  does  undoubtedly  fol- 
low the  example  of  his  progenitor  ;  but  why  so  in- 
variably and  universally  ?  Why  does  he  need  to  be 
born  again  for  his  entrance  into  the  kingdom  of  God  ? 
There  is  the  race  tendency,  the  race  inheritance.  We 
may  not  be  able  fully  to  explain  the  fact ;  but  it  must 
be  accepted. 

One  other  of  these  theories — that  of  the  scientia 
Tnedia — may  be  briefly  mentioned  ;  the  race,  as  indi- 
viduals, are  accounted  and  treated  as  guilty,  as  it  was 
foreseen  they  would  actually  become  so.  Scripture, 
it  must  be  said,  treats  men  as  offenders,  not  in  view  of 
what  they  might  or  may  do  under  certain  conditions, 
but  in  view  of  what  they  have  actually  done.     The 


158  THE  DOCTRINE  OF  SIN. 

question  may  be  asked,  Why  not  include,  under  this 
theory,  the  sin  of  the  first  man,  as  well  as  those  of  his 
children  ? 

Have  we,  then,  any  way  of  stating  this  connection  ? 
There  is  one  that  describes  it  as  actually  existing  ; 
and  this,  j)erhaps,  is  as  far  as  we  are  capable  of  go- 
ing— that  of  consequence.  Human  depravity  is  not 
identically  the  sin  of  the  first  man.  But  it  is  the  di- 
vinely established  consequence,  in  the  race,  of  that  sin  ; 
in  the  Divine  overrulings,  to  manifest  not  only  the  Di- 
vine justice,  but  the  Divine  goodness  and  wisdom. 
Analogies  to  it  are  to  be  found  in  all  directions. 
Heredity  has  become  a  familiar  word  in  human  sci- 
ence. And  there  are  few  communities  of  any  size  that 
do  not  afford  individual  and  family  illustrations.  A 
sinful  i^rogenitor  will  beget  depraved  offspring.  The 
terrible  truth  of  human  sinfulness  comes  to  men  every- 
where. It  is  a  human,  a  natural  fact.  It  is  natural  to 
man,  as  he  is,  in  his  present  condition.  This  had  its  be- 
ginning with  the  first  sin,  and  is  connected  with  it. 
As  Christ  is  the  head  of  the  race  for  its  deliverance,  so 
is  Adam  for  its  sinfulness.  This  depraved  nature 
needs  to  be  changed,  just  as  the  actual  sins,  which  are 
its  outgoing,  need  to  be  i)ardoned.  In  the  work  of 
Christ,  as  in  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  is  provision  for  both 
of  these  necessities.  In  this  way  we  have  no  confu- 
sion of  personalities.  Each  one  must  give  account, 
not  of  Adam' s,  but  of  his  own  sin  to  God.  And  each 
finds,  in  the  provisions  of  Divine  grace,  that  which 
will  enable  him  to  obtain  pardon  for  these  his  own 


THE  DOCTRINE  OF  SIN.  159 

sins,  Divine  spiritual  influence  to  the  mastery  over  tlie 
effect  of  Adam's  sin,  the  j)Ositive  sanctification  of  his 
own  spiritual  nature. 

The  question  has  sometimes  been  raised,  in  connec- 
tion with  this  topic,  whether  man  is  to  be  spoken  of  as 
totally  depraved.  The  phrase  is  not  a  happy  one.  It 
may  mean  that  men  are  demons,  as  bad  as  they  are 
capable  of  being.  This  excludes  degrees  of  guilt  as 
varieties  of  character,  and  is  not  of  course  possible. 
It  is  sometimes  used  to  affirm  the  truth  that  depravity 
extends  to  every  part  of  human  nature,  not  only  to  the 
body,  but  to  the  intellectual,  the  rational,  the  moral, 
and  spiritual  nature.  This,  however  true,  would  be 
better  expressed  in  other  terms.  Knapp's  definition 
of  depravity  "  as  that  tendency  to  sinful  passions,  or 
unlawful  propensities,  which  is  perceived  in  man, 
whenever  objects  of  desire  are  placed  before  him,  and 
laws  are  laid  upon  him, ' '  gives  a  much  better  idea  as 
to  its  character.     (See  Rom.  7.) 

See  on  this  and  chapter  preceding,  Hodge,  Martensen,  Muller's 
"  Christian  Doctrine  of  Sin,"  Harold  Browne,  and  Dr.  Buel  on  "Ninth 
Article." 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

ACTUAL    SIN. 

Sin,  as  a  criminal  act,  has  its  degrees,  of  commission  and  omission. — In- 
voluntary sins  ;  sins  of  ignorance  ;  voluntary  ;  scandal ;  sin  against 
the  Holy  Ghost. 

The  transition  here  is  to  sin  in  the  strict  sense 
of  the  word  ;  from  sin,  as  something  in  the  nature, 
to  that  which  is  in  the  act  ;  from  sin,  as  in  the 
race,  to  that  which  is  in  the  individual.  In  this  last, 
as  already  intimated,  there  is  implied  the  idea  of  Di- 
vine law  promulgated  ;  known  or  knowable  ;  and  the 
free  agency  of  the  human  subjects  under  that  law  ; 
the  free  agency  of  rational  and  moral  being.  Trans- 
gression, by  such  being,  of  the  Divine  Law  is  sin,  sin- 
ful action. 

As,  moreover,  in  numberless  variation,  as  to  its 
modes  and  conditions,  under  which  it  is  committed, 
such  sin  has  its  degrees  of  moral  quality,  as  of  desert 
of  Divine  dealing.  The  Stoics  affirmed  that  all  sins 
were  equal.  What,  perhaps,  they  meant  was  that 
their  quality  was  the  same.  So,  too,  the  affirmation 
has  often  been  made  by  Christian  theologians  that,  as 
sin  is  against  an  Infinite  Being,  so  it  is  infinite  in  its 
character.  But  moral  acts  are  not  measured  in  all  re- 
spects by  the  character  of  their  object ;  as  to  their 
quality  or  degree  by  this  object  to  which  they  have 


ACTUAL  SIN.  161 

reference.  If  so,  acts  of  obedience  and  service  to  God 
would  be  infinitely  excellent.  Degrees  and  kinds  of 
sin,  moreover,  are  expressly  spoken  of  in  Scripture, 
and  as  to  resj)ective  consequences.  The  servant,  know- 
ing liis  Lord's  will,  and  doing  it  not,  is  under  a  heavier 
penalty  and  with  a  greater  degree  of  culpability  than 
his  more  ignorant  fellow- servant,  pursuing  a  like  out- 
ward course.  "  He  that  delivered  Me  to  thee,"  is  the 
language  of  the  Master  to  Pilate,  "  hath  the  greater 
sin." 

Offence,  indeed,  against  God  is  deeper  and  more  hein- 
ous than  as  in  other  directions.  But  thus,  as  against 
Him,  it  has  its  variations  of  degree,  as  of  character. 

As,  moreover,  under  law,  requiring  certain  things  to 
be  done,  as  others  to  be  avoided,  there  is  necessarily 
the  distinction  of  sins  of  omission  and  of  commission. 
Question  has  been  raised  as  to  their  comparative  char- 
acter. In  the  general  the  act  of  commission  is  more 
open  and  positive,  and  thus  indicates  more  positive- 
ness  of  resistance  and  disobedience.  At  the  same 
time,  there  are  some  sins  of  omission  that  are  also 
open  and  public,  and  in  other  respects  heinously  inex- 
cusable. In  individual  cases,  also,  with  peculiar  light, 
and  advantages,  the  omission  is  worse  and  less  excusa- 
ble than  the  commission  of  others,  in  less  favorable 
conditions.  The  main  point  of  special  interest  here  is 
the  reality  of  both  of  those  forms  of  sin :  that  omis- 
sion as  well  as  commission  is  sin,  comes  under  Divine 
disapproval  and  condemnation. 

Looking  thus  at  sins  as  of  various  degrees,  as  alike 


162  ACTUAL  SIN. 

of  commission  and  of  omission,  tliere  are  certain  as- 
pects of  them  that  remain  to  be  noted. 

Among  these  are  what  have  been  called  involuntary 
sins  ;  involuntary  in  the  sense  that  there  is  not  specific 
deliberation  and  determination  beforehand.  The  agent 
finds  himself  in  an  unanticijDated  contingency,  is  sur- 
prised, and  acts  hastily.  He  is  encountered  by  a  new 
form  of  temptation,  and  overcome  ;  or,  through  want 
of  watchfulness  against  old  habits,  falls  under  their 
power.  The  reality  of  sin  is  i)resent  in  all  such  cases. 
The  mitigation  is  with  Him  who  knows  all.  With 
such  sins  in  others  we  must  make  large  allowance. 
With  those  of  our  own  we  must  find  out  the  weakness 
and  defect,  and  be  watchful  against  their  future  influ- 
ence. Every  such  sin,  apart  from  its  other  efi'ects  and 
meanings,  is  a  temptation  to  its  future  and  more  delib- 
erate repetition — the  seminal  principle  to  many  others. 

Akin  to  these  are  what  are  called  sins  of  ignorance. 
Our  Lord's  prayer  on  the  cross  for  His  enemies  pleads 
their  ignorance  of  the  extent  of  their  transgression. 
So,  too,  the  apostle  speaks  of  what  he  did  "  ignorantly 
and  in  unbelief."  And  yet  in  both  is  the  implication 
of  sinful  doing.  The  acts  might  have  been  worse  ;  but 
the  ignorance,  or  imperfect  knowledge,  did  not  entirely 
remove  their  sinful  character.  Such  ignorance,  if  not 
wilful,  might  and  ought  to  have  been  removed  by  care- 
ful inquiry. 

More  positive  are  what  are  called  voluntary  sins  ; 
when  the  act  is  known  and  contemplated  as  sin,  and 
the  determination  is  to  its  commission.     Here,  too,  it 


ACTUAL  SIN.  163 

may  be  said,  the  choice  is  not  of  the  sin,  as  sin,  or  for 
its  own  sake,  but  of  sin  as  the  condition  to  the  enjoy- 
ment or  the  object  for  which  it  is  committed.  The  sin, 
in  such  case,  is  not  so  much  the  object  as  it  is  the 
price,  the  risli  to  the  attainment  of  something  else. 
The  act,  in  such  case,  injures  its  perpetrator.  It  may 
injure  others.  In  both  of  these  respects,  as  in  itself, 
it  dishonors  God.  Its  peculiar  characteristic  is  that  of 
its  deliberate  commission. 

When,  moreover,  such  is  the  case,  it  will  probably 
be  repeated.  The  act  is,  itself,  a  temptation  to  its 
repetition.  In  every  such  act  is  the  seminal  power 
and  principle  of  a  habit.  What  was  thus,  at  first,  sin, 
an  act  unarrested,  becomes  sinful  habit,  vice,  vicious 
character.  There  may  be  a  degree  beyond  this — that 
of  sinning  for  its  own  sake.  Even,  however,  in  ap- 
parent cases  of  this  kind,  it  may  be  the  association  of 
the  act  or  sin  with  some  kind  of  enjoyment.  Such 
monstrosity  seems  to  be  explained  only  under  this  sup- 
position. 

And  all  these  forms  of  sin  may  be  further  contem- 
plated as  to  their  objects.  They  are  against  Godj 
against  the  sinner's  own  moral  and  spiritual  nature, 
against  the  interests  and  welfare  of  his  fellow-men. 
As  related  to  the  agent  and  his  fellow-men,  these  effects 
had  better  be  described  by  other  words.  It,  as  they 
are  related  God,  that  they  are  called  sins.  What  is 
really  wrong  in  any  other  direction  is  a  sin  against 
Him  ;  is  against  His  law  ;  is  best  expressed,  in  its 
meaning,  as  toward  Him,  by  this  word  sin. 


164  ACTUAL  SIN. 

Two  other  sxDecialties  of  sinful  action  may  be  briefly 
described.  One  of  these  is  sins  of  offence,  scandals,  by 
which  the  innocent,  the  weak  and  ignorant  may  be  led 
astray,  or  the  sinful  confirmed  in  wrong  doing.  Our 
Lord  sj)eaks  of  such  offences,  and  of  the  woe  to  those 
through  whom  they  come.  And  the  apostle  mentions 
cases  in  which  even  allowable  things  are  indulged 
in  to  the  injury  of  others.  The  doubtful  things  to 
others,  however  clear  to  the  man  himself,  as  innocent 
and  harmless,  must  be  avoided,  as  the  weak  brother 
may  be  led  into  the  sin  with  which  he  associates  the 
act  in  question.  Anything  doubtful  to  the  doer  him- 
self must  be  abstained  from  ;  and  the  benefit  of  all 
doubt  be  given  to  the  claims  of  God.  Thus  doubting 
and  doing,  such  a  one  sins  and  is  condemnable. 

The  last  of  these  specific  distinctions  of  sins,  is  that  of 
"blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost."  The  original 
reference,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  to  the  blasphe- 
mous ascription,  by  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  of  our 
Lord's  miracles,  wrought  through  the  jDOwer  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  to  the  agency  of  Satan.  The  position 
thus  has  been  taken,  as  by  Chrysostom,  that  as  the  con- 
ditions cannot  be  rex^roduced,  so  the  sin,  under  others, 
cannot  be  repeated.  Others,  as  Augustine,  found  it  to 
be  the  sin  of  x^ersevering  resistance  to  the  Holy  Spirit ; 
and,  therefore,  as  the  sin  of  all  obdurate  transgressors. 
This  came  to  be  identified  with  "  the  sin  unto  death," 
in  the  E^^istle  of  John  ;  as  of  that,  in  the  Ej)istle  to  the 
Hebrews,  "  incaj^able  of  being  renewed  to  repentance." 
So  again,  in  a  modified  form,  the  deadly  as  contrasted 


ACTUAL  SIN.  165 

with  "  the  venial  sins"  of  mediaeval  theology.  Confin- 
ing our  view  to  our  Lord's  language,  it  seems  to  de- 
scribe a  particular  form  of  offence,  and  to  imply  a  crisis 
in  character,  as  involved  in,  or  as  the  result  of  its  com- 
mission. Men  may  now,  as  did  the  Scribes  and  Phari- 
sees, blaspheme  Christ's  works  and  words  filled  with 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  impute  them  to  the  agency  of 
Satan,  They  may  do  it  against  as  great,  if  not  greater, 
evidence  than  was  possible  to  the  original  offenders. 
If  these  essential  conditions  can  be  reproduced,  the  act 
of  which  they  are  the  occasion,  it  would  seem,  can  be 
reproduced  also. 

A  very  common  idea  of  this  sin  is  that  of  unworthy 
participation  of  the  Lord's  Supper  ;  "  eating  and  drink- 
ing to  themselves  damnation" — the  rendering  of  the 
Authorized  Version — instead  of  "  condemnation."  So, 
too,  it  has  been  associated  with  the  refusal,  when 
under  deep  conviction  at  revivals,  to  go  ui3  to  the 
mourner's  bench  to  be  prayed  for.  Then,  again,  with 
the  sin  of  indulgence  in  some  hidden  offence  or  evil 
habit ;  or  of  resisting  Divine  influences  to  a  life  of  re- 
ligious duty.  Every  pastor  of  any  experience  will  en- 
counter such  cases.  Where  there  is  real  anxiety,  ear- 
nestness, a  desire  to  be  free  from  such  power,  there  are 
indications  of  hope  that,  whatever  the  real  sins  and 
follies  of  the  persons  thus  anxious,  the  dreaded  state 
has  not  been  reached.  They  who  really  blaspheme 
and  sin  against  the  Holy  Ghost  have  no  such  troubles. 
In  their  induration  they  have  gotten  rid  of  everything 
of  that  character. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

SIN   IN"   ITS   CONSEQUENCES. 

These  in  their  two  aspects,  as  natural  and  positive,  outward  and  inward. 
— Divine  penalties. — Chastisement  in  penalty. — Punishments  in  pres- 
ent and  future  world  ;  wherein  positive,  wherein  natural. 

The  definition  of  sin,  already  given,  wrong-doing  as 
to  God,  transgression,  by  commission  or  omission,  of 
the  Divine  law,  carries  with  it  certain  inferences  as  to 
its  effects  and  consequences.  These  are  outwardly 
upon  others,  as  they  are  outwardly  and  inwardly  upon 
the  sinner  himself.  Such  an  act  must  have  its  conse- 
quences. It  is  related  to  the  Divine,  eternal  order  of 
things,  and  may  be  eternal  in  these  its  consequences. 
It  breaks  in  upon  this  Divine  order  ;  in  so  doing,  in- 
troduces elements  of  evil  and  confusion.  Some  of 
these  consequences,  as  exhibited  in  Scripture,  we  may 
now  examine. 

They  may  be  contemplated  under  two  aspects  :  first, 
simply,  as  consequences  under  the  divinely  established 
order  of  things  ;  secondly,  as  penalties  under  the  Divine 
prerogative  and  jurisdiction  of  a  Supreme  Lawgiver. 
In  both  aspects,  it  is  as  related  to  law  that  they  take 
place.  In  the  former,  however,  it  is  simply  as  natural 
law,  or  a  naturally  operating  order  or  agency.  In  the 
latter,  we  distinctly  contemplate  the  element  of  per- 


SIN  IN  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  167 

sonality — personal  character  in  the  Lawgiver  and  Ad- 
ministrator, as  also  in  the  offender.  In  both,  moreover, 
we  go  back  to  personality  ultimately,  as  the  only 
rational  ground  either  of  the  moral  law  or  of  the  natu- 
ral order.  Taking,  therefore,  into  account  this  fact  of 
personality,  in  the  Author  as  in  the  breaker  of  the  law, 
we  look  at  it  in  some  of  its  effects  and  consequences. 

These,  to  some  degree,  are  indicated  in  the  threefold 
form  in  which  sin  is  described — ungodliness,  alienation 
from  God  ;  hypocrisy,  pretence  and  self-deception  as 
to  God ;  wickedness,  open  and  positive  rebellion 
against  God.  Finding  in  every  such  manifestation  this 
fact  of  sin,  what  in  it  is  always  involved  ?  What  its 
effect  upon  the  offender  himself,  as  upon  others  ? 

First  of  all,  there  is  in  the  act  and  course  of  sin  the 
privation  and  loss  of  Divine  favor,  the  satisfaction  and 
peace  therewith  connected.  This  may  not  be  recog- 
nized, or  even  thought  of,  by  the  sinner  ;  but  it  is  no 
less  a  real  dejjrivation  from  that  fact.  Not  to  be  con- 
scious of  such  loss  is  itself  a  moral  calamity.  No  peace 
to  the  godless  and  sinful,  unrest,  failure  as  to  the 
peace  and  blessedness  for  which  he  has  the  capacity. 
Naturally  connected  with  this  is  the  anticipation  of  re- 
sults opposite  ;  of  the  positive  effects  of  sin,  of  viola- 
tion or  failure  as  to  the  Divine  law.  Again,  and  with 
these  the  self-condemning  consciousness  of  wrong- 
doing as  to  God — the  sense  of  Divine  disapproval  and 
displeasure,  the  anticipation  of  Divine  x^enalty.  In 
the  mean  time  is  going  on  the  retributive  o^Deration  of 
the  law  of  habit  ;  the  sinful  act  becoming  the  sinful 


168  SIN  IN  ITS  CONSEQUENCES. 

habit,  the  vice  ;  and  mastering  capacity  and  power  of 
resistance.  Some  of  these  effects  may  be  modified  by 
others.  The  fears  and  anticipations,  for  instance,  of 
conscience  may  be  silenced  in  the  result  of  moral  in- 
sensibility and  induration.  But  the  latter  is  the  worse 
condition  of  the  two,  and  is  wanting  in  all  real  peace 
and  satisfaction.  So  far  as  regards  what  may  be  called 
its  present,  natural  results,  sin,  in  the  ex^Derience  of 
the  sinner,  is  wretchedness,  want  of  satisfaction  and 
real  j)eace — often  positive  suffering  and  misery. 

And  as  there  are  these  inward  effects  of  sin  upon 
the  sinner  himself,  so,  in  many  cases,  there  are  others 
of  an  outward  character,  affecting  the  health,  the 
bodily  comfort,  the  social  and  moral  condition  of  the 
sinner,  as  of  those  by  whom  he  is  surrounded  ;  upon 
the  members  of  his  family,  upon  his  associates  in  busi- 
ness and  otherwise,  upon  the  community.  The  act,  or 
course  of  sin,  as  we  have  seen,  is  against,  is  one  of 
wrong  relation  to  the  sinner' s  own  moral  nature,  as  to 
that  of  God  and  that  of  his  fellow- creatures.  It  is, 
thus,  against  the  righteous,  wise,  and  beneficial  order 
of  things.  It  i)roduces  confusion,  injures  the  sinner, 
does  mischief  to  others,  and  dishonors  God.  Whether 
in  what  we  call  the  way  of  natural  consequence  or  of 
divinely  administered  law,  these  are  the  wages,  the 
effect  of  sin.  And,  beyond  this,  is  the  revelation  of 
the  Divine  word,  of  consequences  in  the  future,  the 
consequences  of  sin  beyond  this  world,  in  a  future 
state  of  existence.  "The  wages  of  sin  is  death."  It 
is  death  of  the  body.     If  unarrested,  it  is  death  of  the 


SIN  IN  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  IGl) 

moral  and  spiritual  nature.     If  this,  the  death  beyond 
of  coming  retribution. 

Divine  Punishment. 

We  thus  api)roach  the  question  of  the  Divine  imr- 
X)ose,and  object,  in  dealing  thus  with  offenders  and 
offences  against  Divine  law.  In  other  words,  why  are 
there  Divine  penalties  ?  Why,  it  may  be  asked,  as 
helloing  us  to  a  reply  to  this  question — why  do  we  pun- 
ish criminals  in  this  world  1  The  reply  of  some  is,  to 
reform  the  criminal.  Some  say,  to  deter  others  from 
like  courses.  Some,  to  protect  the  innocent.  Some, 
to  uphold  the  sacredness  and  majesty  of  the  law.  All 
these  answers  are,  to  a  certain  degree,  and  with  refer- 
ence to  certain  cases,  correct ;  but  they  are  all  partial. 
And  they  may  leave  out  the  main  element,  in  view  of 
which  punishment  is  inflicted,  and  that  by  which  alone 
it  is  justified — the  criminality  of  the  person  punished. 
When  Caiaphas  said  that  "  one  man  should  die  and 
the  nation  not  perish,"  this  fact,  if  not  imj)lied,  was  not 
distinctly  stated.  If  he  had  said  one  innocent  man, 
his  argument  would  have  probably  shocked  some  even 
of  his  hearers.  So,  again,  when  an  English  judge  told 
a  thief  that  he  was  hanged,  not  for  horse-stealing,  but 
that  horses  might  not  be  stolen,  it  was  an  admission 
that  the  penalty  was  not  justified  by  the  offence.  All 
these  other  objects — the  reformation  of  the  criminal, 
the  protection  of  society,  the  sacredness  of  the  law — 
may  and  must  have  their  place.  But,  along  with 
these,  and  always,  must  be  the  fact  of  criminality  and 


17U  SIN  IN  ITS   CONSEQUENCES. 

the  proportion  of  the  j)enalty  to  the  crime.  The 
offender  against  Divine  law,  and,  therefore,  as  deserv- 
ing of  penalty,  is  the  subject  of  Divine  administration 
and  dealing.  God  is  justified  as  He  speaks,  clear  as 
He  jadges  ;  and  this  in  view  of  the  real  nature  of  the 
acts  decided  upon. 

Contemplating  sin  as  thus  divinely  dealt  with,  and 
from  its  first  commission,  we  apx)roach  a  toi)ic  of  deep 
interest  in  connection  with  this  whole  subject — the 
difference  between  Divine  j)unishment  and  Divine  chas- 
tisement and  discipline.  Tlie  element  of  penalty,  to 
some  degree,  runs  through  it  all,  and  yet  it  may  be 
mainly  chastisement.  Manifestly  this  is  the  aspect  of 
the  Divine  dealings  with  the  penitent  and  forgiven 
transgressor,  especially  in  connection  with  natural 
sufferings  from  his  past  sins,  bodily  or  otherwise.  So, 
too,  to  some  degree,  with  such  offender  in  the  earlier 
stages  of  his  course  ;  with  many,  perhaps  with  all,  to 
some  degree  during  their  earthly  probation.  Just  as 
the  bodily  man  is  warned  in  his  very  structure  against 
certain  bodily  acts  and  habits,  so  is  the  moral  and  spir- 
itual in  the  laws  and  operations  of  his  moral  and  sjDir- 
itual  organism.  "  God  is  not  willing  that  any  should 
perish."  He  would  have  all  to  be  saved  and  come  to 
repentance.  His  dealings  with  the  sinner  are,  at  the 
first,  to  warn  him  against  sin  ;  at  a  more  advanced 
stage  to  turn  him  from  it  to  repentance.  When  and 
where  chastisement  and  discipline  terminate  in  penalty, 
it  may  be  difficult  to  decide.  Chastisement,  indeed, 
as  already  intimated,  usually  involves  a  degree  of  pun- 


SIN  IN  ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  171 

isliment ;  and  yet  it  may  be  considered  only  as  chas- 
tisement. In  tlie  exx^erience  of  the  forgiven  and  re- 
pentant transgressor  already  alluded  to,  struggling 
painfully  with  his  old  habits  and  suffering  thus  from 
such  habit,  there  is  something  of  penalty.  At  the 
same  time,  it  is  merciful  and  loving  chastisement, 
warning  him  against  indulgence  and  helping  him  in 
his  onward  course.  In  all  such  cases  we  see  the  two 
elements  in  their  combined  oxDeration. 

But  there  is  a  point  in  contemplation,  and  a  stage 
in  the  course  of  the  offender  against  Divine  law, 
when  chastisement,  discipline,  terminates  ;  when  the 
offender  is  contemjDlated  as  coming  under  punishment. 
Such  Divine  i)unishment  may  be  in  the  present  life. 
It  may  be  in  the  future.  If  the  discii^linary  element 
disapioear  in  the  present  life,  it  is  not  so  ordinarily. 
Here  we  are  siDoken  of  and  dealt  with  as  on  trial,  pro- 
bation. For  full  and  final  results,  either  of  reward  or 
of  jDunishment,  we  are  i^ointed  to  the  future.  But 
whether  present  or  future,  this  fact  of  sin,  in  its  pun- 
ishment, is  clearly  exhibited,  as  under  the  Divine  deal- 
ing, "  God  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness." 

What  will  be,  or  is,  the  nature  of  such  punishment 
we  cannot  fully  comprehend.  The  fact  that  it  is  in  a 
world  of  spirit  or  of  spiritualized  bodies,  and  beyond 
the  conditions  of  our  temx)oral  experience,  makes  it 
thus  difficult  of  comprehension.  Contemplating  it 
negatively  as  that  of  deprivation  of  blessing,  positive- 
ly as  that  of  remorse  and  self-condemnation  and  suf- 
fering, we  may  brieffy  look  at  some  of  the  questions 


172  SIN  IN  ITS   CONSEQUENCES. 

that  have  been  raised  in  connection  with  this  subject. 
They  demand  careful  consideration. 

One  of  these  questions  is,  whether  Divine  punish- 
ment in  a  future  world  is  to  be  spoken  of  as  only  nat- 
ural, or  as  both  natural  and  positive.  One  of  the  diffi- 
culties in  its  settlement  is  in  the  ambiguity  of  this  word 
natural ;  changing,  in  this  fact,  the  meaning  of  the 
other  word,  positive.  Natural,  with  many,  means 
physical,  and  nothing  more.  In  such  usage,  positive 
would  be  moral  personality.  Natural,  again,  as  op- 
posed to  positive,  is  that  which  is  the  result  of  the 
established  order  and  operation  of  the  laws  of  the  uni- 
verse ;  positive,  as  something  in  the  Divine  will,  or 
working  additional.  The  former,  as  obligatory,  springs 
out  of  our  natural  constitution  as  related  to  the  natu- 
ral order  of  things  ;  the  latter,  as  revealed  in  Divine 
law  or  jprecept.  But  the  difficulty  here  is  the  imjDossi- 
bility,  in  actions  and  courses,  of  carrying  out  this  dis- 
tinction. We  do  know  that  there  are  duties  naturally 
and  XDOsitively  revealed.  But  the  natural  duties  are 
insisted  upon  in  revelation  ;  and  the  revealed  duties,  if 
we  understood  nature  more  fully,  might  be  recognized 
as,  by  that  nature  demanded — in  other  words,  as  natu- 
ral. What,  in  a  lower  stage  of  human  progress,  may 
be  positive,  in  a  higher  and  subsequent  stage  may  be 
seen  as  natural  or  moral.  Natural  punishments,  in 
this  sense,  would  be  those  that  are  the  result  of  the 
divinely  established  constitution  of  things  ;  positive, 
those  that  are  result  of  Divine  volition  and  action 
specifically  revealed.     But  then,  again,  the  latter,  if 


SIN  IN  ITS    CONSEQUENCES.  173 

we  fully  understood  tlie  divinely  established  constitu- 
tion, might  be  seen  to  be  included  in  it.  The  positive, 
in  such  case,  might  be  recognized  as  natural. 

Our  only  use,  therefore,  of  this  distinction  is  as  re- 
lated to  our  capacity  of  knowledge.  There  are  natu- 
rally known  duties.  There  are  duties  that  are  posi- 
tively revealed.  There  are  rewards  and  x^unishments 
of  both  of  these  classes.  In  this  sense,  as  positively 
revealed,  Divine  punishments  are  positive.  Our  aflBr- 
mation  of  them  rests  ujDon  the  revealed  word  of  posi- 
tive dictation.  In  this  sense  they  are  positive.  As  to 
their  relation  to  the  established  principles  of  operation 
for  the  universe,  they  may  be  what  we  call  natural, 
or,  more  properly  perhaps,  moral.  "  The  judgments 
of  Jehovah  are  right." 

Closely  connected  with  this,  and  one  of  the  issues  of 
our  time,  is  that  of  the  termination  of  Divine  penalty  ; 
and  with  it  that  of  probation  beyond  the  present  life. 
Does  the  Old  or  New  Testament,  in  speaking  of  the 
punishment  of  the  wicked  beyond  this  world,  speak  of 
it  as  coming  to  an  end  ?  Does  it,  in  speaking  of  human 
l^robation,  intimate  that  such  probation  may  go  on  in 
a  future  state  of  existence  ?  Reasons  may  be  suggest- 
ed why  such  topics  should  not  have  been  dwelt  upon  ; 
but  the  simple  issue  with  which  we  are  concerned  is 
the  actual  fact  of  the  case.  If  there  is  termination 
to  the  punishment  of  the  finally  impenitent,  we  are  not 
told  of  it  ;  the  intimations  are,  rather,  the  direct  oj)- 
posite.  If  there  be  probation  for  the  heathen,  or 
certain  classes,  it  is  not  revealed.     And  as  we  are  told 


174  SIN  IN  ITS  CONSEQUENCES. 

to  work  out  our  own  salvation,  so  are  we  required,  as 
we  are  able,  to  urge  and  aid  all  others  in  doing. 

Two  other  questions  in  this  matter  remain  to  be 
noted.  One  of  these  has  to  do  with  the  subjects  of  Di- 
vine penalty.  Is  their  condition  simply  and  only  one 
of  suffering  1  This  is  frequently  asserted.  So,  too,  as 
to  the  other  assertion,  so  often  made,  that  such  condi- 
tion of  suffering,  as  of  sinfulness,  is  in  constant  process 
of  increase  and  aggravation.  Can  it  be  affirmed  that 
this  is  the  teaching  of  Scripture,  or  in  accordance  with 
the  analogy  of  the  Divine  dealings  in  other  respects  ? 
Sin  will  be  punished  according  to  its  real  character 
and  deserts,  and  its  consequences  have  no  revealed 
termination.  This  is  clear.  Is  it  safe  or  wise,  in  our 
ignorance,  to  affirm  anything  beyond  or  additional  ? 

So,  again,  as  to  the  Divine  relations  to  the  sub- 
jects of  such  penalty.  It  is  that  of  Judge,  But  is  it 
that'only  ?  Is  not  the  Judge  also  a  Father  ?  The  rela- 
tion of  all  the  Divine  perfections  to  this  truth  of  Di- 
vine penalty  must  be  borne  in  mind.  Too  frequently, 
if  not  ordinarily,  such  i)enalty  and  its  state  are  spoken 
of  as  related  simply  and  only  to  justice — God,  as  Sov- 
ereign, holding  in  supreme  right  legislative,  judicial, 
and  executive  powers,  and  exercising  them  justly  in 
righteousness  ;  but  this,  let  us  remember,  is  in  connec- 
tion with  His  other  ^perfections.  God  cannot  undeify 
Himself.  And  in  all  His  doings,  even  in  what  He 
calls  "  His  strange  work"  of  penalty,  there  are  work- 
ings also  of  wisdom,  of  goodness,  of  infinite  love  and 
compassion.     In  the  punishment  of  the  offender  the 


SIN  IN  ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  175 

interests  of  others  are  provided  for,  and  the  condition 
of  the  criminal  offender,  we  may  say,  is  the  best  of 
which  he  is  capable.  In  this  blackness  of  the  dark- 
ness of  sin  and  its  consequences,  the  only  light  is  in  the 
perfections  of  Him  by  whom  all  is  administered.  In 
His  hands,  overruling  all  and  overruling  for  good,  we 
leave  the  destinies  of  His  creatures. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

SALVATION"   FROM   SIN". 

Modes  in  which  its  necessity  recognized,  and  sought.— Sacrifices. — 
Self-inflicted  penalty. — Kepentance  and  restitution. — The  Divine  pro. 
vision. — Relation  to  it  of  different  Persons  of  the  Trinity. — The  man- 
ifestation of  the  Person  of  the  Redeemer. — His  modes  of  working.— 
Position  of  His  death  and  sufferings. 

Over  against  these  facts  of  sin  and  its  consequences, 
manifested  in  our  nature  and  specifically  revealed  in 
Scripture,  is  that  which  gives  Christianity  its  peculiar 
characteristic  and  name — that  of  Gospel,  God's  story 
or  message  of  salvation.  Intimations  of  this  are  to  be 
found  in  the  Old  Testament.  And  whether  from 
these  or  from  its  own  sx)iritual  constitution,  human 
nature,  outside  the  circle  of  God's  chosen  people,  has 
looked  and  striven  for  it.  Sin  is  something  that  human 
nature,  in  the  clear  conviction  of  its  existence,  cannot 
rest  under  with  satisfaction.  It  will  either  try  to  make 
it  out  not  sin,  or  in  some  way  to  get  rid  of  ifc  and  its 
threatened  evils.  Very  briefly  some  of  these  forms  of 
effort  may  be  indicated. 

One  is  that  of  sacrifice.  Whether  divinely  instituted 
for  the  first  man  or  not,  they  were  undoubtedly  used 
from  the  beginning  ;  were  offered  by  Cain  and  Abel ; 
accepted  in  the  case  of  Abel ;  thus  accepted  as  offered 


SALVATION  FROM  SIN.  177 

during  the  patriarchal  ages ;  and  were  put  under  Di- 
vine sanction  and  direction  in  the  Mosaic  dispensation. 
And  in  both  stages,  the  ante-Mosaic  and  the  post- 
Mosaic,  these  sacrifices  were,  some  of  them,  of  an  ex- 
piatory character,  relieving  the  criminal  from  the  conse- 
quences of  his  sinful  action.  Many  sacrifices  were  not 
thus  exiDiatory.  Some  of  them  were  thank  offerings, 
some  of  communion  in  worship  before  God.  Some  of 
them  were  propitiative,  not  necessarily  in  view  of  sin  or 
Divine  displeasure,  but  x^roi^itiative  gifts  to  secure  Di- 
vine favor.  And  then  there  was  the  propitiative  sacri- 
fice of  the  subject  under  the  Divine  Ruler' s  displeasure, 
seeking  His  pardon  and  restored  favor.  Here  the  propi- 
tiative partakes  of  the  nature  of  the  expiative,  the  sacri- 
fice or  gift  restitutive,  which  in  its  effort  endeavors  to 
make  satisfaction  for  the  offence  and  its  effects. 
These  are  all  under  the  Mosaic  law.  Ordinarily,  too, 
the  expiative  preceded  the  others,  and  was  needed  as 
rendering  these  others  accei3table.  In  other  words, 
under  Divine  direction  and  in  a  divinely  established 
dispensation,  we  find  exx)iative  sacrifices  for  sin. 

But,  as  hinted  in  their  promulgation,  and  as  clearly 
declared,  by  the  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament  and 
the  teachers  of  the  New  Testament,  these  sacrifices  of 
themselves  had  no  power  to  take  away  sin.  Their  effi- 
cacy was  in  the  Divine  appointment ;  the  pledge  in  it 
given,  that  if  offered  in  the  right  s^Dirit  and  manner 
they  would  be  acceptable  and  efficacious.  They  were 
types,  symbolic  prophecies,  of  a  greater  and  more  per- 
fect sacrifice  ;  but  of  themselves  could  not  take  away 


178  SALVATION  FROM  SIN. 

sin.  If,  moreover,  thus  helpless,  even  as  divinely  ap- 
pointed, much  more  so  under  the  darkness  and  de- 
basement of  heathen  idolatry. 

The  same,  too,  is  to  be  said  as  to  other  supposed 
modes  of  expiation  for  sins.  Self-inflicted  penalty,  for 
instance  ;  sacrifice  of  property,  of  comfort,  of  children, 
of  life  itself,  all  fail  here.  The  criminal  cannot  be  the 
judge,  Jury,  executioner,  and  remitter  of  penalty  in  his 
own  case.  This  could  not  be  under  imperfect  human 
law,  much  less  under  that  which  is  Divine. 

So,  too,  as  to  the  expiative  effects  of  repentance, 
restitution  as  far  as  possible,  and  the  course  of  obedi- 
ence to  Divine  law  following.  These  are  demanded 
in  Scripture,  as  in  reason,  and  they  should  be  striven 
for  ;  but,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  they  are  imperfect  as 
they  go  on  in  the  present  and  the  future,  and  they  do 
not  at  all  provide  for  the  delinquencies  of  the  past. 
They  are  accepted  under  the  Old  Testament,  as  con- 
nected with  the  divinely  appointed  modes  of  sacrificial 
remission  ;  and  they  are  accepted  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment, as  sanctified,  and  made  efficacious  through  the 
great  sacrifice.  Of  themselves  they  cannot  take  away 
sin.  Human  nature,  as  helpless  in  such  exigency, 
needs  something  additional — a  special  Divine  provi- 
sion for  the  removal  of  sin  and  its  consequences  ;  a 
special  Divine  assurance  as  to  its  manner  of  applica- 
tion and  its  efficacy. 

That  needed  provision  is  a  Divine  salvation  ;  one 
administered  by  a  divinely  aj)pointed  Saviour  and 
Mediator.     "  There  is  one  Mediator  between  God  and 


SALVATION  FROM  SIN.  179 

Man,  tlie  Man  Christ  Jesus."  ''  Jesus  Christ  came  into 
the  world  to  save  sinners."  ''  I  came,"  is  Christ's  own 
declaration — "  I  came  to  call  sinners  to  repentance." 

That  provision,  as  already  noted,  is  Divine.  It  is 
one  which  manifests  Divine  love  and  compassion  ;  at 
the  same  time,  Divine  righteousness  and  wisdom.  In 
the  persons  of  the  adorable  Trinity  we  are  told  of  their 
respective  operation.  The  Father,  in  love,  sends  and 
gives  ;  the  Son,  in  such  love,  comes,  and  works,  and  suf- 
fers ;  the  Spirit  reveals,  and  applies,  and  makes  effica- 
cious their  agency  in  its  human  results  and  operations. 
The  first  of  these,  as  exhibited  in  Scrij^ture  declara- 
tion, first  naturally  claims  attention. 

This  comes  before  us  in  various  forms  of  affirmation  : 
"  God,"  says  the  apostle,  "  commendeth  His  love 
toward  us,  in  that,  while  we  were  yet  sinners,  Christ 
died  for  us"  (Rom.  5:8).  "He  spared  not  His  own 
Son,  but  delivered  Him  up  for  us  all"  (Rom.  8  :  32). 
So  in  that  of  St.  John  :  "  Herein  is  love  not  that  we 
loved  God,  but  that  He  loved  us  and  gave  His  Son  to 
be  a  propitiation  for  our  sins"  (1  John  4  :  9, 10).  "  God 
so  loved  the  world,  that  He  gave  His  only  begotten 
Son"  (John  3:16.  See  also  Eph.  2:4-7;  Titus  3: 
4-7  ;  2  Cor.  5  :  19).  Here  are  the  two  great  truths  as 
to  the  salvation  of  the  Gospel :  divinely  originated  ; 
thus  originated  in  love,  in  undeserved  compassion. 
"  God  rich  in  mercy,  for  His  great  love  wherewith  He 
loved"  men,  thus  providing  for  their  salvation. 

As  to  the  work  of  the  blessed  Spirit,  the  examina- 
tion of  this  more  ]3roperly  follows  that  of  the  Divine 


180  SALVATION  FllOM  SIN. 

Son  of  God — the  manifestation  of  God  in  the  person 
and  work  of  His  well-beloved  Son.  We  thus  look  at 
this  manifestation  as  presented  in  the  New  Testament. 

This  comes  before  ns  in  two  aspects  :  First,  as  it  is 
contemplated  in  its  Divine  origination,  in  the  loving 
self-sacrifice  and  abasement  of  the  Son  of  God  ;  sec- 
ondly, that  in  which  it  actually  went  on  in  the  work  of 
redemj^tion.  The  first  of  these  is  exhibited  in  Phil. 
2  :  5-10  ;  Heb.  2  :  14-17  ;  1  :  3.  In  these  and  similar 
passages  the  saving  Deliverer  is  contemplated  prior  to 
His  earthly  manifestation  ;  fulfilling  the  Father's  lov- 
ing purpose  with  reference  to  men  ;  and  yet,  in  so 
doing,  working  out  His  own  work  of  boundless  grace 
and  compassion — the  Son  of  God  becoming  Son  of  Man 
for  man's  deliverance  and  salvation. 

But  this  Divine  purpose,  and  its  manifestation,  in 
the  person  of  the  Divine  Deliverer,  went  on  in  a  cer- 
tain way.  His  actual  manifestation  was  in  His  human- 
ity. "  He  was  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary  ;"  although 
supernaturally  conceived,  yet  naturally  born.  "  He 
increased  in  wisdom  and  stature  ;"  was  subject  to  His 
earthly  parents,  partook  of  the  circumstances  of  their 
earthly  condition.  He  hungered  and  thirsted,  slept 
and  ate,  was  subject  to  weariness  and  pain,  and  en- 
tered into  all  the  forms  of  sinless  life  with  those 
around  Him  ;  and,  at  last,  in  His  bodily  nature,  suf- 
fered a  violent  death.  His  own  self -selected  and  most 
common  appellation  was  that  of  Son  of  Man.  What- 
ever else,  therefore,  is  to  be  found  in  the  person  of  this 
divinely  revealed  Saviour  is  this  trutli  of  His  htiman- 


SALVATION  FROM   SIN.  181 

ity.  Jesus  was  a  man,  in  iDerfect  sympathy  with  man  ; 
thus  capable  of  loving  and  being  loved  with  human 
affection  ;  capable  of  being  relied  upon  in  His  human 
love,  and  compassion,  and  sympathy. 

But  this  Man,  thus  manifested,  in  His  life,  and  feel- 
ings, and  words,  and  acts,  affirmed,  and  was  supernatu- 
rally  sustained  in  it  by  His  works,  that  He  was  One 
sent  from  God  ;  One  having  a  Divine  commission  ; 
that  He  was,  moreover,  not  only,  as  others  had  been,  a 
prophet,  but  that  He  was  The  Proi)het ;  that  He  was 
the  Messiah,  the  Christ  of  Old  Testament  prediction. 
He  was,  thus,  the  saving  Deliverer  that  was  to  come 
into  the  world.  He,  Jesus,  was  the  Christ.  These  two 
names,  now  conjoined  as  a  personal  appellation,  were 
not  so  in  the  beginning.  The  one  was  a  proper  name, 
the  other  an  official  title.  Jesus,  the  divinely  sent 
Teacher,  taught  and  proclaimed  that  He  was  the 
Christ,  the  Messiah. 

Thus  far  we  are  in  the  range  not  only  of  human 
apprehension,  but  of  comx^rehension.  But  beyond  this 
is  another  truth,  in  the  personality  of  this  revealed 
Saviour,  of  transcending  interest,  and  of  the  most  over- 
whelming character  :  "He  is  the  Son  of  Clod,"  and 
this  in  a  sense  unique  and  peculiar.  Angels  and  good 
men  are  sometimes  spoken  of  as  sons  of  God,  as  repre- 
senting or  manifesting  God's  perfections  ;  magistrates 
as  representing  His  authority.  In  one  case  the  term  is 
applied  to  Adam  as  not  born,  but  divinely  called  into 
existence.  So  too  it  was  the  title  of  the  promised  Mes- 
siah.    As  applied  to  Jesus  Christ,  it  includes  all  these 


182  SALVATION  FROM   SIN. 

and  miicli  more.  He  is  a  Son,  as,  like  the  angels  and 
good  men,  manifesting  God's  perfections.  He  is  a  Son 
of  God,  as,  like  the  human  magistrate,  manifesting 
the  Divine  authority.  He  is  a  Son  of  God,  like  Adam, 
supernatural  in  His  coming  into  our  world.  He  is, 
moreover,  as  Messiah,  the  Son  of  God  as  God,  as  hav- 
ing a  Divine  nature,  possessed  of  Divine  perfections. 
While  He  has  a  perfect  human  nature.  He  has  also,  in 
union  with  it,  a  Divine  nature.  The  manner  of  this 
union  we  are  not  told  ;  we  have  indeed  no  comprehen- 
sion. One  of  the  factors  to  it  is  infinite.  We  are  in- 
capable of  construing  this  in  its  distinct  essential  exist- 
ence, much  less  in  its  union  with  humanity.  What, 
however,  is  clear  is  the  truth  of  the  two  natures  ;  the 
perfection  of  their  union,  the  integrity  of  each  in  that 
union  ;  a  heavenly  mystery,  but  full  of  significance  in 
its  earthly  and  human  bearings. 

This  truth,  thus  divinely  transcendent,  at  the  same 
time  reaches  to  and  meets  our  deepest  necessities. 
Christ,  the  Son  of  Man,  is  in  full  sympathy  with  man. 
Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  gives  efficacy  to  that  sympa- 
thy. While  "in  all  points  tempted  like  as  we  are," 
yet  "  in  Him  dwells  all  the  fulness  of  the  Godhead  bod- 
ily." Jesus,  the  Son  of  Man,  is  Christ,  the  Son  of  God. 
"I  and  My  Father  are  one,"  is  His  own  language. 
"  Being,"  said  the  apostle,  "  in  the  form  of  God,  He 
thought  it  not  a  thing  to  be  retained  or  grasped,  to  be 
equal  with  God."  "  My  Lord  and  my  God,"  is  the 
unrebuked  language  of  Thomas.  "  He  made  Himself 
to  be  equal  with  God."     In  these  and  various  other 


SALVATION  FROM  SIN.  183 

declarations  we  find  fliis  truth  exhibited — Jesus  not 
only  a  human,  but  a  Divine  Saviour.  In  the  perfect 
union  of  these  two  natures  He  works  for  the  redemp- 
tion of  men. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

EFFICACY   OF   CHRIST'S   SUFFERINGS. 

Teaching,  Example,  Suffering. — Position  of  tliis  last  in  Scriptural  dec- 
laration.— Forms  of  statement  in  regard  to  it. — Resurrection. — Inter- 
cession. 

In  dealing  with  tliis  subject,  tliere  are  different  as- 
pects in  which  it  may  be  contemplated.  The  order  in 
which  Christ's  manifestation  was  actually  made  is  the 
most  natural,  and  will  best  enable  us  to  take  in  its 
meaning  as  a  whole.  He  is  rejDresented  as  a  Mediator  : 
thus  mediating  in  various  respects  ;  as  a  Teacher  or 
Prophet ;  as  an  atoning  Peacemaker  or  Priest  sacrific- 
ing Himself  ;  as  a  conquering  and  supreme  Lord  of 
His  redeemed  Church  and  people,  and  finally  over  even 
His  enemies.  His  manifestation  for  this  begins  with 
His  instruction  as  a  Teacher,  He  taught,  thus,  by 
word  and  by  example.  In  that  teaching  is  provision 
for  the  necessities  of  man's  intellectual  nature  ;  his 
wants  as  a  rational  being  ;  redemption  for  that  part  of 
human  nature.  Sin  affects  every  part  of  that  nature  ; 
and  it  is  only  the  truth  that  makes  free.  The  teach- 
ing of  Jesus  by  word  was  very  largely  as  to  what 
was  the  true  character  of  God  ;  how  He  regards  and 
treats  man  ;  and  how,  therefore,  man  ought  to  treat 
and  honor  Him.     Every  such  item  of  teaching,  as  to 


EFFICACY   OF  CHRIST'S   SUFFERINGS.  185 

God,  is  a  revelation  of  duty  to  man.  The  Father  in 
heaven,  with  a  Father' s  heart  of  care  and  love,  is  thus 
an  object  of  filial  confidence  and  affection.  So  too 
these  children  of  a  common  Father  must  also  love  and 
benefit  each  other. 

The  teaching  thus  in  word  was  further  enforced 
and  illustrated  by  action.  "  Jesus  went  about  doing 
good  ;"  not  only  teaching,  but  doing.  His  miracles 
and  works  of  comj)assion  for  the  diseased  and  the 
suffering  were  as  object  lessons,  enforcing  what,  in 
that  teaching,  had  been  exhibited.  The  same  may  be 
said  as  to  the  si)irit  of  His  life,  thus  exhibited  and 
illustrated.  In  His  intercourse  with  those  around 
Him,  not  only  with  His  friends,  but  His  enemies,  the 
full  meaning  of  His  words  became  manifest.  All  that 
men  need  to  know,  all  the  necessities  of  man's  ra- 
tional and  intellectual  nature,  are  met  and  pro- 
vided for  in  Christ's  teaching  and  life  example.  In 
the  light  of  this  revelation,  of  truth,  and  obliga- 
tions, and  duties,  and  the  way  of  meeting  them,  no 
man  to  whom  they  come  fails  or  perishes  through  lack 
of  knowledge. 

But  there  is  one  part  of  this  teaching  that  needs  to 
be  emphasized — that  which  makes  known  that  some- 
thing more  than  teaching  and  example  are  needed  for 
human  redemption.  Jesus,  the  Teacher,  in  His  teach- 
ing proclaims  and  announces  Himself  as  Jesus  the  re- 
deeming Saviour,  not  only  from  the  defilement  and 
power,  but  from  the  divinely  condemning  sentence  of 
sin.     The  whole  saving  work  of  Christ  is  sometimes 


186  EFFICACY   OF  CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS. 

asserted  to  consist  in  tliis,  His  teaching  and  examx)le  ; 
by  precept  and  by  action.  To  this  the  reply  has  been 
properly  given,  that  such  is  not  made  the  case  in  the 
New  Testament.  His  teaching  and  example  are 
spoken  of  as  to  be  followed,  but  not  as  saving  men. 
Saved  men  are  to  follow  them.  They  are  thus  saved 
by  His  work  ;  by  His  sufferings  and  death.  Accordant 
with  this  are  His  own  declarations.  These  come  in  a 
twofold  form  :  first,  in  the  specific  declarations  as  to 
His  own  death  and  suffering  in  relation  to  the  remis- 
sion of  sins.  The  necessity  of  the  cross  was  a  neces- 
sity of  human  nature — a  necessity  in  the  experience 
and  work  of  the  Saviour  of  human  nature.  The 
teaching  of  Christ,  so  far  from  constituting  the 
atoning  work  or  taking  the  place  of  His  atoning  sac- 
rifice, exhibits  its  peculiar  necessity  and  charac- 
ter ;  that  it  is  something  additional  to  and  different 
from  mere  instruction.  In  that  teaching  He  reveals 
Himself  as  a  forgiver  of  sin,  as  obtaining  forgiveness 
of  sins. 

Coincident  with  these  specific  declarations,  as  to 
such  necessity,  are  those  of  Christ's  teaching,  as  to 
men' s  relations  to  God,  their  duties  arising  therefrom, 
and  the  spirit  in  which  they  must  receive  performance. 
Here  there  is  an  enlargement,  a  length,  and  breadth, 
and  depth,  and  height  of  obligation,  of  duty,  and  of 
motive  to  its  performance,  upon  all  that  had  previously 
existed.  The  offender  against  Divine  law,  under  the 
Ten  Commandments,  and  condemned,  is  still  more 
hopelessly  condemned  in  that  of  the  Sermon  on  the 


EFFICACY    OF   CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS.  187 

Mount,  as  of  similar  instruction  following.  If  Jesus 
were  only  a  moral  teacher,  He  enlarged  the  circle  of 
human  obligations,  leaving  men  without  capacity  of 
meeting  them.  The  purity  and  perfection  of  this 
teaching  as  to  human  duty,  make  manifest  the  need  to 
human  nature,  of  some  new  i)ower  for  its  successful 
performance  ;  for  pardon  and  help,  in  case  of  trans- 
gression and  failure. 

The  manner  of  this  efficacy  we  examine  farther  on. 
Just  now  we  look  at  the  truth  of  the  incarnate  Christ, 
in  His  sufferings  and  death,  for  the  sins  of  the  world. 
What  this  fully  involved — in  other  words,  an  exhaus- 
tive theory  of  the  atonement — will  ever  baffle  the 
capacities  of  our  finite  intellect.  Analogies  in  Divine 
and  human  dealings  help  us  to  understand  it,  in  its 
practical  bearing,  as  in  its  appeal  to  our  affection  and 
sense  of  obligation.  It  is  a  revealed  truth  ;  and,  as 
thus  revealed,  we  receive  it  upon  the  Divine  dictation. 
In  the  instruction  of  Jesus,  as  we  have  seen,  there  is 
provision  for  the  wants  of  man's  rational  nature. 
Here  there  is  necessity  of  and  provision  for  his  moral 
nature,  his  conscience — that  of  the  pardon  of  sin,  the 
removal  of  its  penalty.  We  thus  turn  to  some  of  the 
declarations  of  Scripture  upon  this  subject. 

Among  these,  as  of  special  significance,  are  those  in 
which  this  part  of  Christ's  manifestation  and  work  is 
spoken  of  as  in  comparison  with  others.  Its  position 
js  thus  made  one  of  supreme  pre-eminence.  "  As 
Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness,  even  so 
^inust  the  Son  of  Man  be  lifted  up"  (John  3  :  14).     "  I| 


188  EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS. 

I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth,  I  will  draw  all  men  unto 
Me"  (John  12  :  32).  "  My  blood  shed  for  the  remis- 
sion of  sins"  (Matt.  26  :  28).  "  The  Son  of  Man  came 
to  give  His  life  a  ransom  for  many"  (Mark  10  :  45). 
"  I  delivered  unto  you,  first  of  all,  that  Christ  died  for 
our  sins"  (1  Cor.  15  :  2).  ''  We  preach.  Christ  cruci- 
fied" (1  Cor.  1  :  23).  "  I  determined  not  to  know  any- 
thing among  you  save  Jesus  Christ  and  Him  crucified" 
(1  Cor.  2:2).  "  God  forbid  that  I  should  glory  save 
in  the  cross  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ"  (Gal.  6  :  14), 
"  We  were  reconciled  to  God  by  the  death  of  His  Son" 
(Rom.  5  :  10).  "  We  have  redemption  by  His  blood" 
(Eph.  1:7).  "  The  blood  of  Jesus  Christ  cleanseth  from 
all  sin"  (1  John  1:7).  "He  bore  our  sins  in  His  own 
body  upon  the  tree"  (1  Pet.  2:24;  3:18).  "Christ 
suffered  for  sins,  the  just  for  the  unjust,  that«He  might 
bring  us  to  God"  (Rev.  5  :  9-12).  "  Thou  wast  slain,  and 
hast  by  Thine  own  blood  redeemed  us  to  God."  "  Worthy 
is  the  Lamb,  that  was  slain  to  receive  power,  and  riches, 
and  wisdom."  The  point  of  interest  in  passages  of 
this  character,  and  taken  together,  is,  first,  the  num- 
ber and  frequency  of  their  appearance  ;  secondly,  the 
prominent  and  central  position  which  they  are  made 
to  occupy.  It  is  not  only  Jesus  the  Christ,  the  Mes- 
siah ;  not  only  Christ  the  Teacher,  the  Example  ;  not 
only  the  Master,  the  incarnate  Son  of  God  ;  but  Christ 
crucified.  All  these  other  truths  of  His  person  are  ex- 
hibited and  emphasized.  But,  as  heightening  their 
importance,  and  along  with  them,  that  Christ  suffered 
and  died  for  sinners  ;  that,  as  related  to  the  fact  of 


EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS.  189 

sin  and  its  forgiveness,  these  His  sufferings  had  aton- 
ing efficacy. 

Under  these  general  statements,  however,  are  certain 
particulars — special  forms  in  which  this  same  truth  is 
exhibited.  Bearing  in  mind  the  usage  of  such  words 
as  redemption,  ano\vrpoo<ji<i^  remission,  aq)eGi<;,  pass- 
ing over,  Ttapsffi?^  as  to  sins  with  which  men  are 
chargeable,  and  from  the  consequence  and  power  of 
which  they  are  delivered  by  Christ's  death,  let  us  no- 
tice these  particulars  of  Scripture  affirmation. 

First,  then,  are  those  which  connect  Christ  and 
His  work  with  forgiveness  of  sin.  The  imj)lication 
everywhere  is  that  men  are  by  nature  and  act  sin- 
ful ;  and,  therefore,  need  not  only  light  and  help  in 
other  respects,  but  pardon,  forgiveness  of  sin.  One  of 
these  classes,  to  take  Knap2:)'s  order,  is  that  which 
affirms  that  Christ  has  atoned  for  our  sins.  1  John 
2  :  1,  2,  "If  any  man  sin  ;"  Heb.  1:3,  "By  Himself 
He  i^urged  our  sins  ;"  Heb.  9  :  26,  "  He  appeared  to  put 
away  sin  by  the  sacrifice  of  Himself. ' '   See  whole  chapter. 

Second,  we  find  the  same  truth  in  those  which  re- 
quire unlimited  trust  and  confidence  in  Him,  and  His 
work  of  atoning  suffering,  for  Divine  accejotance  and 
welfare.  Rom.  5  :  1,  2,  "  Being  justified  by  faith,  we 
have  X)eace  with  God  ;"  Eph.  1:7,  "  We  have  redemp- 
tion through  His  blood  ;"  Acts  26  :  18,  "  To  receive 
remission  of  sins  by  faith  in  Me." 

Third,  in  those  teaching  that  this  is  the  only  divine- 
ly revealed  w^ay  of  such  forgiveness.  Acts  4  :  12,  "  No 
other  name  given  under  heaven  among  men,  whereby 


190  EFFICACY   OF  CHRIST'S   SUFFERINGS. 

tliey  may  be  saved  ;"  Heb.  10  :  26,  "  There  remaineth 
no  more  sacrifice  for  sin."     See  also  Heb.  5  :  4. 

Fourth,  in  those  teaching  that  God,  through  Christ, 
forgives  sin.  Acts  10  :  43,  "  Whosoever  believeth  in  Him 
shall  receive  forgiveness  of  sin."  See  also  Acts  13 :  38, 39. 
Forgiveness  of  sins  through  Him  not  remissible  by  Mo- 
saic law.  1  John  2  :  12,  "  Your  sins  forgiven  for  His 
sake  ;"  Rom.  5  :  10,  "  Reconciled  to  God  by  the  death 
of  His  Son  ;"  1  Thess.  1  :  10,  "  Jesus  who  delivered  us 
from  the  wrath  to  come  ;"  2  Cor.  5  :  21,  "  God  hath 
made  Him  w^ho  knew  no  sin  to  be  sin  for  us  ;"  Rom. 
3  :  21-28,  "  But  now  the  righteousness  of  God,"  etc.  ; 
Isa.  53 : 5,  "He  was  wounded  for  our  transgres- 
sions," etc.;  Ps.  40:6,  7,  "Sacrificed  and  offering 
Thou  wouldst  not."     "  Lo  I  come." 

But  there  are  other  passages  in  which  the  efficacy  of 
Christ's  work  is  more  specifically  connected  with  His 
sufferings  and  death.  Many  of  those  already  quoted 
imply  this,  as  seen  from  the  connection.  At  the  same 
time,  there  are  others  in  which  it  is  more  specifically 
affirmed. 

First,  then,  are  passages  which  affirm  that  Christ 
suffered  and  died  for  all  sins—for  all  the  sins  of  men. 
Matt.  26  :  28,  "  My  blood  shed  for  the  remission  of 
sins  ;"  Rom.  3  :  25,  "  Whom  God  hath  set  forth  to  be 
in  His  blood  a  propitiation  ;"  1  Cor.  15:3,  "  Christ 
died  for  our  sins  ;"  Heb.  9  :  12,  "By  His  own  blood 
He  obtained  for  us  redemption."  See  also  2  Cor. 
6  :  14,  15  ;  1  Pet.  3  :  18  ;  Isa.  63  :  5  ;  1  John  1,  etc. 

Just  here  we  encounter  the  question  as  to  the  sig- 


EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S   SUFFERINGS.  191 

nificance  of  one  of  the  prepositions  employed,  vnkp^ 
whether  when  rendered  "  for,"  it  is  to  be  taken  as  "  for 
the  advantage  of"  or  "in  the  place  of."  The  three 
others,  TtBpi  with  genitive,  Sia  with  the  accusative,  and 
ixvri  with  genitive,  present  little  of  material  for  ques- 
tion. ' Tnip^  it  is  affirmed,  means  "for  the  advantage 
of,"  and  nothing  more  ;  and,  therefore,  there  is  no 
affirmation  here  of  Christ's  suffering  in  the  j)lace 
of  the  sinner.  To  this  the  reply  is  twofold.  Even 
supx^osing  such  to  be  the  case,  the  use  of  avn^  and 
in  one  instance  as  compounded  with  Xvrpov,  avn- 
A  vrpov,  ' '  for' '  sins  gives  us  this  idea  of  substitution. 
Still  further,  and  apart  from  the  use  of  am  altogether, 
the  iDroper  rendering  of  vTtep,  in  certain  connections,  is 
that  of  "in  the  place  of."  "'  To  die,  or  sj)eak  for,  or 
on  behalf  of  another,  when  the  alternative  is,  that  this 
other  shall  die  or  speak  himself,  is  to  die  or  speak  in 
his  stead."  *  This  is  a  grammatical  principle.  It  is 
thus  so  because  it  is  one  of  reason  and  common  sense. 
See,  as  illustrative,  Rom.  5  :  7,  10  ;  1  Pet.  3  :  18. 

The  same  truth  is  exhibited  when  it  is  said  that 
Christ  bore  our  sins,  that  He  took  them  upon  Himself, 
that  in  His  death  He  was  treated  as  a  sinner.  John 
1  :  29,  "  The  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of 
the  world  ;"  1  Pet.  2:24,  "He  bore  our  sins  in  His 
own  body  upon  the  tree  ;  by  whose  stripes  ye  are 
healed  ;"  Heb.  9  :  28,  "  Christ  once  offered  to  bear  the 
sins  of  many  ;"  Isa.  63. 

*  Harrison  on  Greek  preposition,  with  illustrations,  p.  463. 


192  EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS. 

So,  too,  in  tliose  in  which  He  is  treated  as  a  sinner  ; 
and  this  with  reference  to  our  forgiveness.  2  Cor. 
5  :  21,  "  Gfod  hath  made  Him  who  knew  no  sin  to  be 
sin  for  us  ;"  Gal.  3  :  13,  "  Christ  hath  redeemed  us 
from  the  curse  of  the  law,  being  made  a  curse  for  us." 

So,  too,  in  those  which  sj)eak  of  His  death  as  a  ran- 
som. 1  Tim.  2:6,  "He  gave  Himself  a  ransom  for 
all,"  AvTiXvrpov  vTtep  Ttavtov  ;  Matt.  20  :  28,  "  To  give 
His  life  a  ransom  for  many  ;"  Heb.  9  :  12,  "  By  His 
own  blood  He  obtained  for  us  eternal  redemption." 

Last  of  all  are  those  in  which  the  death  of  Christ  is 
compared,  in  its  significance,  with  those  under  the 
Mosaic  institute,  especially  as  efficacious,  once  for  all, 
and  not  needing  repetition.  Eph.  5:2,  "He  gave 
Himself  an  offering  for  us  to  God — a  sacrifice  ;"  Rom. 
3  :  25,  "  Set  forth  to  be  a  propitiation  ;"  Heb.  9  :  14, 
"  The  blood  of  Christ  who  offered  Himself  without 
spot  to  God  ;"  1  Pet.  1  :  19,  "As  of  a  lamb  slain  ;" 
1  John  1:7,  "  The  blood  of  Jesus  which  cleanseth  from 
all  sin;"  Rev.  5:9-12,  "Thou  wast  slain,  and  hast 
redeemed  us  by  Thy  blood."  "  Worthy  is  the  Lamb 
that  was  slain  ;"  John  1  :  29,  "  The  Lamb  of  God,  that 
taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world." 

In  these  different  forms,  not  only  of  Pauline,  but  of 
Petrine  and  Johannean  statement,  is  described  that 
part  of  the  work  of  the  incarnate  Christ,  included  under 
His  sufferings  and  death,  as  also  its  effect  upon  men  in 
their  condition  of  sin.  It  is  efficacious  to  the  removal  of 
this  sin.  It  first  secures  j)ardon  to  the  sinner,  as  under 
penalty  of  the  Divine  law.     It  thus,  further,  through 


EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS.  193 

this,  appeals  to  his  gratitude  and  love,  and  gives  him 
motive  and  p)Ower  of  deliverance  from  its  enslavement 
and  dominion.  In  both  of  these  respects  the  blood  of 
Jesns  Christ  cleanseth  from  sin  ;  and  never  in  one  with- 
out the  other.  The  former  is  first  emphasized  in  these 
passages.  The  latter  more  fully  comes  up  in  connec- 
tion with  the  work  of  the  Blessed  Spirit.  Confining 
our  attention,  for  the  present,  to  this  former,  that  of 
the  effect  of  Christ's  sufferings  and  death,  as  related 
to  the  pardon  of  sinners,  their  acquittal  or  justifica- 
tion under  Divine  law,  we  find,  first,  that  they  are 
spoken  of  in  their  efficacy  as  universal.  "  He  died  for 
all."  His  death  is  potentially,  if  not  actually,  effica- 
cious for  all  men,  in  all  times  ;  for  the  whole  life  of 
man  ;  for  every  form  and  degree  of  sin  to  which  it  may 
be  applied.  It  does  not  save  the  blasphemer,  who 
calls  it  the  work  of  Satan.  It  does  not  save  the  apos- 
tate, who  turns  from  it  and  tramjoles  it  under  foot. 
In  other  words,  its  remedial  power  comes  in  its  appli- 
cation, and  as  it  is  sought ;  cannot  be  exercised  as  re- 
jected. But  to  all  trying  it,  to  all  accepting  and  ap- 
plying it,  in  good  faith,  it  is  in  good  faith  offered,  in 
Divine  p)Ower,  will  prove  itself  efficacious. 

Resurrection. 

Following  the  teaching  and  example  of  Christ  and 
His  atoning  sacrifice  for  sin  is  the  truth  of  His  resur- 
rection. In  this  we  have  the  triumphant  conclusion 
of  His  work,  the  triumphant  manifestation  of  its  power 
and  efficacy  ;  as,  also,  the  vindication  of  all  His  claims, 


194  EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S  SUFFERINGS. 

whether  i^receding  or  following.  In  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  and  the  manifestations  of  the 
next  forty  days  following,  as  in  the  ascension  closing 
these,  is  evidence  not  only  to  the  actual  spectators, 
but  to  those  examining  their  testimony,  and  to  the 
end  of  time,  of  His  Divine  power  and  authority  ;  of  the 
validity  of  all  His  claims  ;  of  the  truth  of  all  His 
words,  whether  of  promise  or  of  warning.  To  use  the 
expression  of  the  apostle  at  Athens,  "  God  hath  given 
assurance  of  Christ's  supreme  judgeship,  and  conse- 
quently of  the  validity  of  all  His  claims,  in  that  He 
hath  raised  Him  from  the  dead."  The  resurrection  is 
thus  made  the  evidential  keystone  of  the  Christian 
system.  As  having  this  position,  the  apostles  are  de- 
scribed in  the  x^eculiarity  of  their  office  as  witnesses  of 
it — the  event  by  which  was  divinely  authenticated  all 
the  claims  and  affirmations  of  the  risen  and  ascended 
Master.  See  Rom.  4  :  25  ;  7  :  11  ;  1  Pet.  1  :  3  ;  1  Thess. 
4  :  14  ;  1  Cor.  15. 

Following  in  the  order  of  thought,  and  as  one  of  the 
truths  of  Christ's  state  of  exaltation,  is  that  of  His  in- 
tercession— His  intercessory  agency  for  the  welfare  of 
His  people.  This  feature  of  HLs  work  had  its  place 
during  His  state  of  humiliation,  and  in  His  ministry  on 
earth.  The  prayer  of  intercession  on  the  night  before 
the  crucifixion,  strikingly  of  this  character,  was  doubt- 
less but  one  of  many  similar,  in  His  ministry  preced- 
ing. In  these  earlier  instances,  it  was  the  intercession  of 
the  well -beloved  Son,  Himself  identified  in  His  trial  of 
human  condition  with  the  objects  of  His  petitions.  In 


EFFICACY   OF  CHRIST'S   SUFFERINGS.  195 

those  following  the  ascension,  it  is  that  of  the  success- 
ful Conqueror  of  sin  and  death,  the  triumphant  and 
exalted  Lord,  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Father,  putting 
forth  His  sympathy,  exercising  His  prerogative,  and 
working  with  the  Father  for  the  benefit  and  welfare  of 
the  objects  of  His  affection.  ''If,"  says  the  beloved 
disciple,  "if  any  man  sin,  we  have  an  Advocate  with 
the  Father  ;  and  He  is  the  propitiation  for  our  sins." 
The  idea  here  seems  to  be  that  of  the  permanent  effi- 
cacy of  His  proi^itiative  work  ;  His  presence,  as  such 
a  propitiation,  involves  the  pleading  and  its  efficacy. 
"  Who,"  again,  is  the  language  of  St.  Paul,  "who  is 
He  that  condemneth  ?  It  is  Chr-ist  that  died  ;  yea, 
that  is  risen  again,  who  also  maketh  intercession  for 
us."  Here,  again,  the  intercession  is  contemplated, 
as  having  efficacious  application,  as  against  all  con- 
demning agencies  ;  all  such  condemnation  taken  away, 
in  the  application  to  the  soul  of  His  atoning  sacrifice 
for  sin.  "  He  entered,"  says  the  writer  of  the  Epistle 
to  the  Hebrews,  ' '  into  heaven  to  aj)pear  for  us' '  in  our 
behalf  "  in  the  presence  of  God."  He  is  able  to  save 
to  the  uttermost  all  that  come  to  God  by  Him  ;  seeing 
He  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  them."  The 
idea,  it  may  be  said,  in  all  these  passages,  is  that  of 
Chrisfs  continued  mediation  for  His  people — His  pres- 
ence with  the  Father,  in  the  pleading  application  of 
His  work  in  its  all  sufficiency  ;  in  the  bestowment  and 
dispensation  of  His  Spirit,  to  the  necessities  of  His 
Church  and  people.  Thus,  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
Father,  He  is  working  and  overruling  to  the  advance- 


19(3  EFFICACY  OF  CHRIST'S   SUFFERINGS. 

ment  of  His  own,  as  of  the  Father's  purposes  ;  the 
completion  and  perfection  of  His  kingdom.  He,  the 
great  High  Priest,  touched  with  a  feeling  of  our  in- 
firmities, is,  at  the  same  time,  the  All  Powerful  Divine 
Son  and  Intercessor  for  all  needed  assistance  and 
blessing. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

THE   ATONING   MEDIATION. 

Wherein  does  it  consist. — The  theory  of  example  and  sympathy,  that  of 
judicial  satisfaction,  that  of  governmental  administration,  that  of  pa- 
ternal sovereignty. 

In  looking  at  the  different  features  of  this  work,  of 
the  Divine-Human  Mediator,  His  teaching  and  exam- 
ple, His  sufferings  and  death,  His  resurrection  and  in- 
tercession— in  other  words,  at  what  may  be  called  His 
prophetic  and  priestly,  as  introductory  to  His  kingly 
office,  we  are  encountered,  in  the  second,  with  the 
deeply  interesting  question  as  to  the  manner  of  His 
atoning  mediation,  the  real  place  and  significance  of 
His  sufferings  and  death,  in  the  economy  of  redemp- 
tion. That  they  are  our  example  is  undoubted.  But 
they  are  something  more.  They  are  involved  to  some 
degree  in  His  identification  by  sympathy  and  other- 
wise with  human  nature.  But  this  is  not  all.  They 
are  manifestly  contemplated  in  the  New  Testament  as 
a  transaction  under  law,  and  as  related  to  forgiveness 
of  sin  and  removal  of  its  penalty.  God  is  a  party  in 
this  transaction,  as  is  the  suffering  Saviour,  and  those 
for  whom  He  is  described  as  suffering.  There  is  a 
Sovereign,  there  are  criminals,  and  there  is  a  Media- 
tor. What  is  the  atonement  or  mediative  process  of 
reconciliation,   through  which  the   Divine   Sovereign 


198  THE  ATONING  MEDIATION. 

pardons  and  accepts  the  human  criminal  ?  in  other 
words,  through  which  comes  forgiveness  of  sins  'i 

Putting  aside  the  early  notion  of  some  of  the 
Fathers,  that  the  redemption  thus  made  was  one  from 
the  dominion  of  Satan,  a  ransom  or  ground  of  rightful 
release  from  his  claims  or  service  ;  as  also  that  already 
disposed  of  in  the  texts  quoted,  that  of  Christ's  exam- 
ple in  suffering  and  teaching,  as  constituting  His  aton- 
ing sacrifice  for  sin,  we  look  at  some  others  of  a  differ- 
ent character. 

One  of  these  is  that  which  finds  this  atoning  work 
almost  entirely,  if  not  purely,  one  of  justice — in  what 
may  be  called  the  judicial  theory.  Under  it  is  the 
principle  of  exact  equivalence,  of  strict  imputation. 
The  righteous  Judge  identifies  the  Mediator  with  the 
criminal.  By  imputation  of  the  sin  of  the  criminal, 
the  Mediator  becomes  guilty,  not  merely  in  the  sense 
of  participant  in  the  consequences,  but  of  the  crimi- 
nality itself  ;  as  is  the  criminal,  by  like  imputation  of 
merit,  participant  of  the  Mediator's  righteousness, 
not  only  of  its  benefits,  but  of  its  reality  and  merit. 
Along  with  this,  of  strict  imputation,  as  demanded  by 
perfect  justice,  is  that  of  exact  equivalence.  The 
Mediator  suffers  all  that  the  criminal  deserved,  and  all 
that  he  w^ould  have  suffered  ;  the  criminal,  imputa- 
tively  identified  with  his  Mediator,  has  the  desert  of 
that  Mediators  righteousness.  To  such  a  one,  as  thus 
identified  with  Christ,  there  is  not  only  jiardon,  but 
Xoeifect  righteousness. 

Here  is  the  twofold  difficulty  of  Omniscience — per- 


THE  ATONING  MEDIATION.  199 

feet  knowledge,  seeing  and  knowing  beings  and  things 
as  they  are  not,  as  also  a  hopeless  confusion  of  per- 
sonalities. Sufficient  to  say,  that  while  bringing  out 
one  truth — that  of  Divine  justice — it  does  not  take  ac- 
count of  others,  exhibited  in  Scripture  in  connection 
with  this  atoning  work  ;  as  with  some  of  these  it  is  in 
manifest  conflict. 

Intended  to  assert  this  same  truth  of  the  Divine  jus- 
tice, so  emphasized  in  the  judicial  theory,  as  also 
others,  is  that  which  has  been  called  the  governmental 
or  administrative.  Here,  the  Divine  Sovereign  is  con- 
templated not  simply  as  in  the  judicial,  but  in  the 
executive  capacity,  the  Sujpreme  Ruler,  in  whose  per- 
son is  combined  all  the  functions  of  perfect  govern- 
ment. The  problem,  therefore,  in  such  Divine  admin- 
istration, and  even  in  regard  to  penalty,  is  nofc  simply 
its  desert,  as  to  quality  or  quantity,  but  how  will  pen- 
alty, dealt  with,  properly  affect  the  criminal  and 
others  ?  The  possible  reformation  of  the  criminal  him- 
self and  the  benefit  of  others  ;  the  protection  of  the  in- 
terests of  others  ;  the  exercise,  for  these  and  other 
reasons,  of  Divine  execntive  clemency  ;  the  mode  of 
doing  this  so  as  not  to  tempt  to  ill  doing,  but,  rather, 
to  deter  from  it — all  these  come  in,  as  helping  to  some 
conception  of  the  divinely  arranged  and  accepted  aton- 
ing mediation.  Here,  as  in  the  purely  judicial  view, 
is  justice,  righteousness.  But  it  is  justice  in  connec- 
tion with  love,  wisdom,  infinite  compassion — the  right- 
eousness of  all  these  attributes  in  their  combined  and 
harmonious  co-operation.     Our  ultimate  is  not  an  at- 


200  THE  ATONING  MEDIATION. 

tribute,  but  a  j)erson — He  in  wliom  is  all  perfection. 
That  Divine  jDerson,  in  the  exercise  of  all  these  perfec- 
tions, and  with  reference  to  every  possible  interest, 
manifests  that  interest,  in  the  giving  of  His  well-be- 
loved Son  to  human  redemption  ;  in  that  gift,  and  as 
rendering  it  fully  effective,  giving  Him  to  a  life  of 
human  sacrifice,  to  a  death  of  humiliation  and  suffering. 
But  in  the  light  of  the  New  Testament  representa- 
tion, and  with  the  x)redominant  New  Testament  con- 
ception of  the  Divine  relations,  God  rather  as  a  Sover- 
eign Father  than  simple  Judge  or  Ruler,  we  have  author- 
ity and  suggestion,  as  to  what  may  be  called,  not  the 
judicial,  nor  the  executive,  but  the  paternal  view  of  the 
atoning  mediation.  This  includes  both  of  these  others, 
and  contains  something  more.  The  Heavenly  Father, 
perfect  in  love  to  His  earthly  children,  as  in  His 
capacity  of  dealing  with  them  both  righteously  and 
lovingly,  and  with  reference  to  all  the  possible  inter- 
ests of  all,  arranges  for  and  accepts  the  sacrifice  and 
suffering  of  His  well-beloved  Son,  as  a  means  to  the 
pardon  and  restoration  to  favor  and  life,  of  His  sinful 
and  sin-condemned  earthly  children  ;  in  this,  giving 
and  making  sacrifice  of  that  Son — "  the  just  for  the 
unjust'' — so  as  to  bring  them  back  to  life  and  safety. 
Here  it  is  not  simply  justice,  as  with  the  judicial  view  ; 
not  simply  arrangement  and  merciful  adaptation  to 
the  necessities  and  wants  of  all,  as  in  the  govern- 
mental. It  is  all  this,  but  as  going  on  under  the  con- 
trolling influence  of  fatherly  love,  of  infinite  fatherly 
interest,  and  tenderness,  and  compassion.     "  God  in 


THE  ATONING  MEDIATION.  201 

this  commendetli  His  love  toward  us."  This  work  of 
sacrifice  and  suffering  is  thus  efficacious  :  first,  in  the 
arrangement  of  Divine  justice,  love,  and  wisdom  ;  sec- 
ond, in  the  character  and  perfections  not  only  of  Him 
who  gave,  but  of  Him  who  gave  Himself,  the  well- 
beloved  Son  ;  God  in  Christ  w^orking  and  making  sacri- 
fice for  man's  redemption. 

It  will  thus  be  seen,  as  already  intimated,  that  in 
this  is  included  all  that  is  true  in  the  preceding  views 
of  the  atoning  sacrifice  and  mediation,  and  more. 
It  includes  the  old  patristic  idea  of  ransom  from  the 
power  of  Satan.  It  includes  that  of  example  and  iden- 
tification, in  feeling  and  sympathy.  It  includes  that 
of  judicial  vindication  of  Divine  righteousness  ;  of 
Divine  administrative  righteousness  and  wisdom. 
And  then,  additional  to  these,  pervading  them  all  and 
giving  them  a  higher  significance,  that  of  fatherly 
love,  and  interest,  and  compassion,  and  self-sacrifice. 
The  love  of  God,  in  Christ  Jesus  our  Lord,  sparing  not 
His  ow^n  heavenly  Son,  but  giving  Him  up  for  the  re- 
demption of  His  earthly  sons,  in  their  sin  and  con- 
demnation ;  God,  in  the  person  of  Christ,  sparing  not 
Himself,  but  giving  Himself  to  the  accomplishment  of 
this  redemption. 

Smeaton's  "  Doctrine  of  the  Atonement." 

J.  McLeod  Campbell's  "Nature  of  the  Atonement." 

Cave's  "  Scripture  Doctrine  of  Sacrifice." 

Crawford's  "  Doctrine  of  tlie  Atonement." 

Martensen's  "  Dogmatics." 

Hill's  "  Divinity." 

See  also  Kuapp's,  Hodge's,  and  Shedd's  Theologies. 


CHAPTER  XYIII. 

Christ's  work  in  its  APPLiCATioisr, 

To  sinners  condemned,  justification. — To  those  morally  and  spiritually 
defiled,  sanctification. — Relation  of  these  to  each  other. — To  those 
needing  exaltation,  heavenly  blessedness. — Christ's  teaching  and  ex- 
ample as  related  to  all  these. 

This  work  we  have  looked  at,  in  its  different  fea- 
tures, as  scripturally  presented,  and  as  objective  to 
those  for  whose  benefit  it  takes  place.  His  incarnate 
life  and  manifestation ;  His  atoning  sacrifice  and 
death  ;  His  resurrection  and  ascension;  His  interces- 
sion— these,  in  their  harmonious  co-operation,  find  their 
object  and  result  in  man's  salvation  ;  his  deliverance 
from  sin  and  its  evils  ;  his  exaltation  to  heavenly 
blessedness.  The  manner  and  particulars  of  that 
operation,  subjectively,  and  as  verified  in  human  ex- 
perience, now  demand  'examination.  How  are  these 
blessings  of  Christ's  work  appropriated  ? 

One  of  the  first  of  these  is  that  usually  described  by 
the  word  justification.  How  this  comes,  is  a  contro- 
verted question.  What  it  is,  is  no  less  a  point  of  con- 
troversy. The  difficulty  here,  in  many  cases,  has  been 
a  mere  strife  of  words.  Justification,  6iHai6ffvvt^^ 
sometimes  means  righteousness,  rightness  of  disposi- 
tion ;  sometimes  ineans  rightness  of  position,  acquittal 


CHRIST'S   WORK  IN  ITS   APPLICATION.  203 

under  the  Divine  law.  This  last  is  its  meaning  in  the 
fifth  chapter  of  Romans.  "  Being  justified,  pardoned, 
and  accepted  by  faith,  righted  as  to  our  standing  and 
position,  we  have  peace  with  God."  Men  as  offenders 
against  Divine  law,  whether  sovereignly  or  fatherly 
law,  need,  first  of  all,  imrdon,  remission,  acceptance. 
This  implies  removal  of  the  penalty  of  sins  in  the  past. 
Justification,  therefore,  implies  this  fact :  remission  of 
sin  and  its  penalty,  acquittal,  acceptance  under  the 
Divine  law.  This  is  for  Christ's  sake  in  view  of  His 
mediatorial  work,  especially  that  of  His  sufferings  and 
death.  In  Him,  identified  with  Him,  in  the  act  of 
faith,  there  is  no  condemnation.  The  way  in  which 
this  is  done,  we  simply  allude  to  for  the  j^resent.  It  is 
the  simjile  truth  of  remission,  of  pardon,  of  accept- 
ance, and  acquittal  under  the  Divine  law  ;  the  change 
in  the  earthly  subject  from  the  position  of  a  con- 
demned criminal,  to  that  of  an  accepted  and  beloved 
child.  "Being  justified,"  "accepted,"  is  the  lan- 
guage of  the  apjostle. 

Connected  with  this,  and  to  some  degree  implied  in 
it,  as  accom]3lished  in  the  saving  work  of  Christ,  is 
that  already  described  as  sanctification,  or  rigbtness  of 
inward  disposition  ;  deliverance,  release  not  only  from 
the  penalty  of  sin,  but  from  its  power,  its  bondage. 
As  sin  condemns,  so  it  defiles,  and  enslaves,  and  de- 
bases. Release  from,  mastery  over  this,  is  no  less  a 
necessity  of  human  nature  ;  the  deliverance  of  that 
nature  from  the  evils  and  consequences  of  sin,  inward 
as  well  as  outward.     As  in  justification,  is  the  change 


204  CHRIST'S   WORK  IN  ITS   APPLICATION. 

from  the  position  of  tlie  condemned  criminal  to  that  of 
the  accepted  child,  so,  in  sanctification,  there  must  be 
one  in  his  inward  disposition  and  character.  This  last 
involves  the  love  of  holiness  in  the  place  of  the  old  love 
of  sin  ;  renewal  in  the  Divine  image.  The  manner  of 
securing  this,  we  do  not  here  examine.  We  simply  note 
it  as  a  human  necessity,  for  which  in  Christ's  work 
there  is  provision. 

Usually  inchided  in  this,  and  needing  to  be  brought 
out  and  distinctly  contemplated,  is  the  end,  in  the  pur- 
pose and  work  of  Christ ;  not  only  that  of  the  pardon 
of  criminals,  nor  even  the  full-  reformation  of  these 
criminals,  but  the  full  and  blessed  result  to  which  par- 
don and  reformation  are  introductory — the  salvation, 
the  heavenly  exaltation  of  human  nature.  Salvation 
is  often  used  as  meaning  deliverance  from  positive 
evil,  outward  and  inward  ;  but  its  full  meaning  goes 
beyond  this.  That  full  meaning  may  be  better  ex- 
pressed by  this  other  word  "  exaltation, '•  the  eleva- 
tion of  human  nature  to  the  highest  blessedness  of 
which  it  is  capable.  In  the  result  of  Christ's  work  is 
"  deliverance  from  the  bondage  of  corruption,"  attain- 
ment to  "  the  glorious  liberty  of  the  sons  of  God;" 
positive  transformation  of  the  whole  man  in  all  his 
powers  and  capacities,  elevation  to  a  character  and 
condition  of  heavenly  blessedness. 

Provisions  of  Christ's  Work  in  their  Reception. 

These — justification,  sanctification,  and  heavenly 
exaltation,  as  in  their  nature — have  been  thus  indi- 


CHRIST'S   WORK  IN  ITS  APPLICATION.  205 

cated.  It  remains  that  we  examine  the  manner  in 
which  they  become  savingly  available.  These  bless- 
ings for  the  race  are  really  efficacious  in  their  reception  • 
by  individuals.  Individuals  are  justified,  are  sancti- 
fied, are  exalted.  In  the  personal  reception  of  these 
blessings  themselves,  they  become  the  medium  of  their 
communication  to  others ;  to  them,  also,  as  indi- 
viduals, and,  through  them,  to  a  much  wider  circle. 
It  is  thus  to  this  personal  reception  or  appropriation 
that  we  now  give  inquiry.  How,  first,  in  order,  in 
this  matter,  is  a  man  justified  ?  How  is  it  that  he  ob- 
tains forgiveness  of  sin,  Divine  favor  and  forgive- 
ness ? 

The  rei3ly  to  this  question  is  given  in  Rom.  5  : 1, 
and  in  the  reply  to  the  Philippian  jailer  :  "  Being  jus- 
tified by  faith,  we  have,"  or,  as  some  render  it,  "let 
us  have  peace  with  God."  "  Have  faith  in  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  and  thou  shalt  be  saved."  Believe  is 
the  word  here,  both  in  the  Authorized  and  the  Revised 
Version  ;  but  it  is  objectionable  as  bearing  a  double 
sense.  The  ordinary  one,  moreover,  that  in  which  it 
is  taken  by  the  large  majority  of  readers,  is  that  of 
mere  speculative  belief,  intellectual  assent,  acceptance 
of  a  fact,  upon  evidence,  or  a  preponderance  of  proba- 
bilities. The  other,  that  which  is  meant  in  these  and 
similar  passages,  is  trust,  reliance  upon,  confidence  in 
a  person  ;  the  word  or  character  of  that  person,  as  in 
his  personality  he  is  known  and  relied  uj^on.  The  lat- 
ter of  these  is  preceded  by  the  former,  but  does  not 
always  accompany  it.     Intellectual  belief  of  facts,  in 


206  CHRIST'S  WORK  IN  ITS  APPLICATION. 

regard  to  persons,  is  a  step  to  faitli  in  tliem,  but  does 
not  include  it.  "  Have  faitli  in  God,"  said  the  Mas- 
ter:  "Have  faith  also  in  Me;"  "Have  faith  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ."  Such  faith,  trust,  personal  con- 
fidence, reliance  upon  the  personal  Christ,  the  Son  of 
God  in  His  w^ork  and  offers,  in  the  word  and  character 
of  God  as  revealed  in  Him,  becomes  the  instrumental 
means  of  Divine  acceptance  and  salvation.  As  God 
gratuitously  offers,  so  man  must  gratefully  take — not 
attempt  to  pay  for,  or  buy,  or  meritoriously  deserve — 
what  is  thus  offered.  "  It  is  of  faith,"  said  the  apos- 
tle, "  that  it  might  be  by  grace.  It  cannot  be  by  law." 
It  must,  therefore,  be  by  grace.  If  by  grace,  then 
through  faith.  Just  as  works  of  obedience  and  merit 
are  related  to  law,  so  is  faith  to  grace.  In  this  act  of 
faith  or  trust  in  Christ,  and  the  Divine  offers  in  Him, 
the  soul  is  justified,  has  peace.  Justification,  pardon, 
acceptance,  thus,  from  its  very  nature,  is  no  matter 
of  degrees  or  stages  ;  but  is  at  once  accomplished.  It 
is  transition  from  condemnation  to  pardon,  from  death 
to  life,  from  displeasure  to  favor  and  accej^tance.  As 
it  comes  by  faith,  so  in  the  exercise  of  faith  it  is  ac- 
complished. 

But  co-instantaneous,  as  to  its  incipiency,  with  jus- 
tification is  sanctification.  The  blessing  of  forgiveness, 
of  remission  of  sin,  of  acceptance  in  Christ,  is  the  be- 
ginning of  an  inward  change  corresponding.  The 
faith  which  takes  Christ's  offered  blessing,  and  thus 
justifies,  also  and  in  its  very  nature  begins  to  sanc- 
tify.    As  men  thus  live  by  faith  in  their  justification 


CHRIST'S  WORK  IN  ITS   APPLICATION.  207 

or  escape  from  deatli,  so  they  walk  by  such  faith  in 
their  subsequent  spiritual  life.  But  here,  of  course, 
are  the  elements  of  degree  and  progress  ;  the  getting 
rid  of  the  sinful  and  earthly  ;  the  attainment  of  the 
spiritually  excellent  and  heavenly.  The  means  and 
agencies  to  this  are  indicated  farther  on.  Jast  here 
we  direct  attention  to  the  nature  of  the  process  itself 
as  it  goes  on— the  "  cleansing  from  all  filthiness  of  the 
flesh  and  spirit,  the  perfecting  in  holiness. "  The  soul, 
thus,  as  we  have  seen,  in  justification,  is  put  in  its 
proper  position,  becomes  righteous,  is  righted  under 
the  Divine  law  for  its  conflict  and  struggle  with  evil 
and  sin.  In  sanctification  that  struggle  inwardly  goes 
on  to  perfection  ;  thus  goes  on  until  death  is  swal- 
lowed up  in  victory.  Sanctiflcation,  thus,  positively, 
as  well  as  negatively,  is  its  result.  It  is  holiness,  free- 
dom from,  and  striving  against  evil  ;  excellence  and 
the  striving  for  its  highest  attainment.  The  goal  of 
effort  in  these  respects  is  the  Christ  life  and  character, 
the  Christ  approval  and  blessing. 

The  result  and  consequence  of  these  are  to  be  seen 
in  the  third  particular  already  mentioned— heavenly 
exaltation.  Justiflcation,  freedom  from  past  sin  and 
its  curse  ;  sanctification,  mastery  and  freedom  from 
sin  and  its  defilement  in  the  present  and  future,  are 
thus  the  divinely  arranged  steps  and  stages  to  some- 
thing higher— heavenly  exaltation.  The  element  of 
struggle  in  this  last  is  absent.  The  conflict  has  ended 
in  victory.  Christ  is  exalted  at  the  right  hand  of  the 
Father.     Christ's  people  are  partakers  of  that  exalta- 


208  CHRIST'S  WORK  IN  ITS   APPLIOATIOX. 

tion.  As  they  liave  suffered  for  and  with  Him,  so 
they  reign  with  Him.  It  is  thus  not  only  deliverance 
from  sin  and  its  consequences,  but  heavenly  elevation 
and  blessedness.  In  the  salvation  of  Christ  all  these 
elements  are  included. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

THE   BLESSED   SPIEIT   IN   THE   WORK   OF    SALVATION. 

Applies  and  makes  efficacious  the  work  of  Christ.— This  in  all  its 
stages. — The  spiritual  change  and  transformation,  and  how  described. 
— His  instrumentality. — His  personal  agency  and  influence  with  that 
instrumentality. 

Thus  far  we  have  been  occupied  with  the  work  of 
the  First  and  Second  Persons  of  the  adorable  Trinity 
in  human  salvation.  The  Father  gives  and  sends  and 
accepts  the  mediation  of  the  well-beloved  Son.  The 
Son,  in  His  voluntary  humiliation,  comes,  makes  sac- 
rifice, and  suffers  for  human  deliverance  and  welfare. 
The  blessed  Si^irit  deals  with  human  nature  so  as  to 
render  the  benefits  of  such  work  savingly  effective. 
This  last  we  are  now  called  to  examine  :  the  quicken- 
ing and  ai)plicative  agency  and  influence  of  the  Sj^irit, 
inducing  and  impelling  men,  to  acceptance  and  im- 
provement of  the  divinely  provided  salvation.  He, 
the  Paraclete,  the  Administrator  of  Divine  truth  and 
Divine  influence,  thus  makes  those  truths  and  influ- 
ences savingly  efficacious.  His  work  goes  on  in  all 
the  stages  of  the  redeemed  liffe,  already  exhibited. 
Men,  for  instance,  are  justified  by  that  faith  which  is 
itself  a  gift  of  the  Spirit,  called  into  existence  through 
His  agency,  in  the  presentation  of  Divine  truth.     They 


210  THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION. 

are  sanctified  by  faith,  and  love,  and  all  the  Divine 
graces  which  He,  the  Spirit,  in  the  exhibition  and  en- 
forcement of  the  truth  of  Christ,  calls  into  existence  and 
nourishes  to  perfection.  And  they  are  eventually  glori- 
fied and  exalted  in  the  exercise  of  these  graces,  of  which 
He  is  the  Giver  and  Dispenser.  ' '  God  worketh  in  men. " 
God  the  Spirit  thus  personally  works  in  men,  in  every 
stage  of  spiritual  life  and  advancement.  As  there  is 
need  in  human  nature  for  Divine  spiritual  influence, 
enabling  men  to  appropriate  the  benefit  of  Christ's 
mediation,  so  that  needed  influence  in  the  work  of  the 
Blessed  Spirit  is  dispensed.  If  man  in  this  matter 
works  effectually,  it  is  because  God  the  Spirit  is  work- 
ing in  and  with  him.  The  apostles,  in  their  work,  have 
assurance  of  the  presence  and  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
of  the  Spirit,  the  Revealer,  the  Disjienser  and  Quick- 
ener  of  Divine  truth,  as  giving  eft'ect  and  success  to 
their  undertaking.  He,  in  so  doing,  would  "  take  of 
the  things  of  Christ"  and  reveal  to  them  their  full 
meaning;  would  "recall  to  their  remembrance"  the 
words  of  Christ's  previous  teaching  ;  would  "  show 
them  things  to  come,"  and  "  lead  them  into  the  whole 
truth"  as  to  His  j^erson  and  work.  In  so  doing  with 
the  apostles  as  their  work  went  on,  the  Spirit  would 
accomplish  certain  results  with  their  hearers.  He 
would  convict  the  world  of  sin  ;  would  vindicate  the 
righteousness,  and  consequently  the  su  fficiency  of  Christ 
as  a  Saviour  ;  would  give  assurance  of  the  judgment, 
the  condemnation  and  overthrow  of  the  Evil  One,  and 
of  all  working  with  him  against  Christ  and  His  kino-- 


THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION.  211 

dom.  This  work  of  the  Blessed  Spirit,  with  the 
i:)reachers  and  hearers  of  Divine  truth,  contemjjlates  in 
its  results,  all  that  is  included  in  the  three  great  stages 
already  indicated.  This,  His  work,  not  resisted,  co- 
operated with  and  prayerfully  appropriated,  the 
human  recipient  spirit  is  justified,  sanctified,  is  finally 
glorified.  It  is  the  Spirit  that  quickeneth,  that  givetli 
life  in  each  and  in  all  these  stages,  and  to  their  final 
consummation.  In  every  point  of  this  divinely  ar- 
ranged process,  it  is  the  "  selfsame  Spirit  distributing 
to  each  one  severally  as  He  will." 

But  while  thus  generally  described,  in  His  sanctify- 
ing and  saving  operation  in  human  nature,  there  are 
special  forms  and  modes  of  expression  under  which 
that  operation  is  brought  to  view.  To  some  of  these, 
therefore,  we  now  give  examination.  There  is  the 
great  change  from  death  to  life,  from  the  power  of 
Satan  to  that  of  God.  What  are  the  scriptural  aspects 
under  which  that  change  may  be  contemplated  ? 

The  Spiritual  Change, 

Various  words  exhibiting  the  manner  of  this  change 
are  used  in  Scripture.  They  may  all  be  regarded  as 
having  reference  to  one  great  truth — the  transition  from 
a  state  of  nature  to  one  of  grace  ;  from  the  condition 
of  earthliness  and  sin  to  one  of  Divine  favor  and  holi- 
ness. While  to  be  distinguished  logically,  as  exhibit- 
ing aspects  of  this  one  fact,  they  cannot  be  so  chrono- 
logically. Most  of  the  confusion  on  this  subject,  in- 
deed, has  arisen  from  the  effort  to  make  such  distinc- 


L>  1 2  THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION. 

tioii  ;  as,  for  instance,  between  the  time  of  regenera- 
tion and  renewal,  and  that,  again,  of  repentance  and 
conversion.  We  do  not  scripturally  speak  of  a  man  as 
regenerate  and  unrenewed,  or  repentant  and  unconvert- 
ed. Any  one  of  these  implies  the  others.  They  are  all 
needed  spiritual  comj)lements  to  any  one  as  really  ac- 
complished. All  these  forms  of  expression  help  us  to 
understand,  in  its  many-sided  significance,  this  great 
truth  of  spiritual  experience — that  of  moral  and  spir- 
itual change  and  transformation.  In  the  word  ' '  con- 
version," for  instance,  turning,  STtiGrpocpri,  is  the  figure  of 
one  going  in  a  wrong  or  dangerous  direction,  and  turn- 
ing aside,  going  back  or  in  another.  So,  again,  "regen- 
eration," TTaXivyevvsffia  and  dvayswcxcj^  is  that  of 
transition  by  birth  into  a  new  condition  ;  as  is  avanai- 
vcDGi?^  that  of  being  made  over  or  anew  into  such  con- 
ditions. In  classical  and  Jewish  usage  this  word, 
TtaXivyevvsGia,  expressed  the  idea  of  a  change  to  a 
something  better.  The  manumitted  slave,  under  Ro- 
man law,  was  born  again  in  the  process,  regenerated. 
So  too  with  the  restored  exile,  as  his  sentence  of  ban- 
ishment was  removed  ;  as  was  the  heathen  proselyte 
born  by  admission  into  the  covenant  blessings  of  Is- 
rael. The  word  "  repentance,"  fxaravoia^  again,  is  de- 
scriptive of  the  change  of  the  rational  nature  ;  another, 
(.lerafxeXsia,  that  of  the  emotional,  corresponding.  So 
again  there  is  the  figure  of  men  passing  from  death  to 
life,  literally  the  change  from  the  natural  to  the  spir- 
itual life  or  condition.  In  all  there  is  the  same  truth, 
but  under  difi'erent  representations.     Each   one   con- 


THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IX  THE  WORK  OP  SALVATION.  213 

tains  something  not  in  the  others,  and  jet  li  el  ping  to 
make  those  others  more  intelligible.  In  the  i^ieravoLa^ 
the  change  as  to  the  vov?,  the  rational,  is  brought  out 
— this  its  rational  character.  In  the  jusrapieXeia,  the  ac- 
tion of  the  emotional,  of  the  affections  and  desires,  is 
indicated.  In  the  £7riffrpoq)r/  is  there  like  imi^lication 
of  that  of  the  volitional  ;  a  sx:)iritual  change,  in  which  is 
involved  moral  action,  voluntary  determination.  And 
in  the  TraXiyyeweffia  is  that  of  the  thorough  and  com- 
plete transformation  of  the  whole  character.  Some  of 
these,  as  with  TraXtyysweffia,  emphasize  the  Divine 
agency  to  this  result.  Others,  as  with  anifftpocpT],  em- 
phasize the  human  ;  but  in  none  to  the  exclusion  of 
that  which  is  in  the  others.  It  is  a  great  change  and 
transformation  accom2:>lished  in  the  power  of  the 
Spirit  of  God  ;  in  the  free  moral  response  of  the  human 
spirit  to  His  agency  and  influences.  The  man  thus,  in 
his  own  moral  and  spiritual  personality,  lives  the  new 
life.  At  the  same  time  Christ,  by  His  Spirit,  origi- 
nates this  life,  and  lives  in  him. 

And  this  brings  us  into  the  great  topic  of  the  opera- 
tions of  the  Blessed  Sj^irit,  as  related  to  man's  natural 
condition,  and  the  transformation  to  the  sx^iritual. 
This,  to  some  degree,  has  been  imj^lied  in  what  has 
gone  before  ;  but  it  demands  specific  consideration. 
Its  imx)ortance  is  that  it  finds  its  necessity  in  the  moral 
and  spiritual  condition  of  human  nature  ;  its  inability, 
unaided,  to  appropriate  even  the  x^i'ovisions  and  bless- 
ings of  the  salvation  of  the  Gospel.  ' '  If  any  man  sin, ' ' 
says  one  of  the  apostles,   "  we  have  an  Advocate,  a 


214  THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION. 

Paraclet(?,  a  Helper  with  tlie  Father — Jesus  Christ  the 
righteous — and  He  is  the  proi)itiation  for  our  sins." 
This  Advocate  or  Helper,  Jesus,  is  thus  exhibited  for 
the  removal  of  the  guilt  and  penalty  of  sin.  But  He  who 
is  thus  the  Helj^er  with  reference  to  this  issue,  tells  of 
another  whose  help  is  directed  to  another  necessity — 
that  of  enabling  men  to  know  and  fully  ajjpropriate 
what  He  Himself,  the  propitiating  Saviour,  had  done 
for  them.  "  I  will  pray  the  Father,  and  He  will  send 
you  another  Helper."  "That  Helper  will  lead  you 
into  all  truth."  "  He  shall  testify  of  Me."  In  other 
words,  He  will  fully  reveal,  and  apply,  and  make  effi- 
cacious the  provision  of  My  salvation.  It  is  a  work, 
first,  upon  the  preachers  of  the  Gospel ;  taking  of  the 
things  of  Christ  and  showing  them  in  their  full  signifi- 
cance ;  leading  them  into  the  whole  truth.  It  is  one 
also  upon  the  hearers,  convicting  the  sinful,  pressing 
that  truth  upon  their  minds  and  consciences,  and  pre- 
paring them  for  its  acceptance. 

Looked  at  collectively,  this  work  of  the  Spirit,  and 
for  both  j)reachers  and  hearers  of  the  Gospel,  is  needed  ; 
can  alone  give  to  that  work  its  divinely  intended  results 
and  consequences.  And,  as  with  men  collectively,  so 
with  them  individually.  The  i^reacher,  if  really  what 
he  professes,  is  himself  a  transformed  man  of  the 
Spirit,  and  his  preaching,  only  under  the  power  of  that 
Spirit,  can  transform  His  hearers.  The  necessity,  as 
already  intimated,  is  in  human  nature,  in  its  alienation 
and  estrangement  from  God.  "That,"  says  the  Mas- 
ter, "  which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is  flesh."     "  The  car- 


THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION.  215 

nal  mind,"  says  the  apostle,  "is  enmity  against 
God."  "  We  know  not  what  we  should  pray  for  as 
we  onght,"  In  these  and  similar  passages  is  the  con- 
trast of  the  natural  and  gracious  condition.  "  Those 
naturally  born  of  the  flesh"  are  graciously  born  of  the 
Spirit.  "The  carnal  mind,  enmity  against  God,"  in 
the  reception  of  the  Spirit,  becomes  "  life  and  peace." 
Those  not  knowing  how  to  pray  aright,  have  the  Spirit 
to  intercede  for,  and  in  them,  effectively.  The  change 
thus  from  death  to  life,  from  enmity  to  love,  from 
darkness  to  light,  is  wrought  in  the  agency  and  influ- 
ences of  the  Divine  Spirit.  That  change,  in  some  of 
its  stages  and  results,  we  have  already  seen.  It  re- 
mains that  we  endeavor  to  ascertain  its  nature.  What, 
in  this  change  from  grace  to  nature,  is  involved  ? 

First,  we  may  say  there  is  a  change  of  mind,  of  the 
intellectual  and  rational  nature.  Through  this  there 
will  be  one  ui)on  the  emotional  nature,  the  affections 
and  desires  ;  and,  through  both  of  these,  ui)on  the 
will.  Feeling  sometimes  goes  before  reason,  and  will 
sometimes  anticipate  it.  But  the  change,  to  be  thor- 
ough and  effective,  includes  all  ;  and  in  due  time  each 
one  will  have  its  jilace.  Light,  warmth,  and  energy 
are  needed  for  this  great  moral  and  spiritual  change 
and  transformation.  In  the  personality  and  agency  of 
the  blessed  Spirit  these  necessities  find  their  ample 
provision.  That  light  and  warmth  and  energy  are  the 
Divine  truths  in  Christ,  ministered  by  the  Spirit  of 
Christ ;  the  Divine  truths  of  Christ's  love,  and  grace, 
and  all-sufficiency  for  men.     These  become  fully  opera- 


216  THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION. 

tive,  as  by  His  Spirit  tliey  are  revealed  and  applied 
with  converting  and  sanctifying  power  and  energy. 
The  intellect  is  thus  enlightened,  affections  moved,  the 
will  changed  and  sanctified.  "  It  is,"  says  the  Master, 
"the  Spirit  that  quickeneth."  In  all  these  respects 
to  man,  dead  in  trespasses  and  sins,  that  Sx:>irit  is  tlie 
qiiickener,  the  life-giver. 

Just  here  we  encounter  the  controverted  question,  as 
to  the  nature  of  this  infiuence,  whether  or  not  it  is 
irresistible,  and  with  this  the  issues  of  unconditional 
predestination  and  final  perseverance.  As  is  the  first 
of  these  questions  answered,  so  logically  will  be  the 
others.  A  help  to  its  reply  may  be  found  in  the  in- 
strumentality which  the  Spirit  is  described  as  employ- 
ing ;  that  instrumentality  is  Divine  truth  (1  Pet. 
1 :  22,  23  ;  James  1  :  18  ;  John  17  :  17  ;  15  :  3  ;  2  Thess. 
2  :  13  ;  John  8  :  31,  32  ;  Ps.  19  :  7,  8  ;  2  Tim.  3  :  15, 16,  17). 
Primarily  here  the  reference  is  to  the  truth  of  Scripture, 
the  divinely  inspired  word  of  truth.  That  truth,  how- 
ever presented,  whether  in  preaching,  in  sacraments  or 
ordinances,  becomes  such  instrument.  The  blessed 
Spirit,  using  this,  is  not,  however,  confined  to  it  in 
His  gracious  operations.  He  may  use  the  truths  of 
nature  and  of  Providence,  as  He  did  striving  with  men 
before  the  flood  ;  the  truth  contained  in  afiiiction  and 
blessing  ;  any  and  every  truth,  by  which  men's  minds 
and  consciences  may  be  affected.  As  Divine  Spirit, 
dealing  with  human  spirit,  producing  a  sjDiritual  re- 
sult. He  uses  a  spiritual  instrument  to  accom2:)lisli  His 
purpose.     This  great  change  is  a  moral  and  spiritual 


THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION.  217 

one.  From  its  very  nature  it  demands  a  moral  resi)onse 
on  tlie  part  of  its  subject  to  the  Divine  influence.  As  the 
response  of  a  free  moral  agent,  that  response  is  an  act  of 
freedom  ;  the  human  spirit  yielding  to  and  placing  it- 
self at  the  disposal  of  the  Divine  Spirit.  God  thus 
beginning,  graciously  works  in  man  to  will  and  to  do. 
Man,  both  in  willing  and  in  doing,  responds  to  and 
obeys  the  Divine  impulsion.  Salvation  in  every  such 
instance  is  of  Divine  grace— in  the  blessing  offered  as 
in  the  constraining  influence  of  Him  who  offers  it. 
And  yet  it  is  as  Divine  grace  yielded  to  and  accepted 
that  it  becomes  savingly  operative.  If  men  are  pre- 
destinated and  elected,  they  are  to  make  their  calling 
and  election  sure.  If  they  finally  persevere,  it  is  as 
they  perseveringly  respond  to  the  aids  and  influences 
of  the  Divine  Helper  and  Sanctifier.  They  are  always 
dealt  with  as  able  to  act  otherwise  ;  to  resist  the  Di- 
vine influences,  and  thus  fail  as  to  their  final  benefit. 
There  is  thus  election  to  advantages  and  privileges. 
As  this  is  responded  to,  the  full  result  is  the  election 
of  blessing.  The  former  is  unconditional,  the  latter 
conditional.  And  in  both,  the  elect  are  made  so,  not  to 
enjoy  these  privileges  and  blessings  alone  and  only  for 
themselves,  but  to  extend  and  communicate  them  to 
others. 

One  other  point  needs  to  be  brought  out  clearly  and 
distinctly.  The  Spirit,  it  has  been  said,  uses  the  truth  as 
an  instrument.  Is  not  that  truth  all  with  which  we  have 
to  do  ?  In  other  words,  is  not  the  whole  work  of  the 
Blessed  Spirit  in  this  matter  to  reveal  these  truths  as 


218  THE  BLESSED  SPIRIT  IN  THE  WORK  OF  SALVATION. 

they  are  given  to  us  in  the  inspired  Word  ;  and  in  giv- 
ing us  that,  has  He  not  entirely  fulfilled  His  commis- 
sion ?  Manifestly  this  does  not  meet  the  scriptural 
declarations  on  this  subject.  The  Sj^irit  does  indeed 
reveal  the  truth.  But  He  also  uses  it.  He  is  pres- 
ent dealing  with  the  human  spirit  in  such  usage. 
"  Neither  He  that  i^lanteth,  nor  He  that  watereth,  but 
God  givetli  the  increase."  Here  the  apostle  is  speak- 
ing of  truth  thus  used  in  spiritual  planting,  })ut  need- 
ing divinely  quickening  power.  So  too,  when  he 
speaks  of  God  working  in  them,  to  will  and  to  do,  the 
same  idea  is  implied.  The  peculiarity,  indeed,  of  the 
Spirit's  work  to  abide  with  men  forever,  in  this  view,  is 
disposed  of.  He  would  thus  turn  over  His  work  to 
the  written  word.  Men  are  now  living  under  the  dis- 
pensation of  the  Spirit.  One  of  the  ]3ervading  truths 
of  that  dispensation,  is  this  of  His  presence  and  power  ; 
His  presence  and  power  in  all  moral  and  spiritual 
agencies  ;  His  influence  and  agency  through  these,  and 
with  these  wpon  sj^iritual  agents,  urging  them  and  aid- 
ing them  in  the  way  of  life.  Christ  bodily  absent  is 
present  by  His  Spirit,  to  His  Church  and  people,  in 
their  work  and  s]3iritual  life,  even  to  the  end  of  the 
world. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE   CHURCH   AND   SACRAMENTS. 

The  Church  invisible  and  visible,  ideal  and  actual. — Teaching  of  the 
Articles. — Sacraments  ordained  of  Christ. — How  different  from  other 
sacred  ordinances. — Baptism  and  its  effects. — Question  as  to  its  form, 
its  subjects,  by  whom  administered. — The  Lord's  Supper. — The  two 
questions  of  difference  and  controversy. — Sacrificial  character. — That 
of  the  kind  of  presence. 

The  bringing  in,  by  the  Blessed  Spirit,  of  individuals 
to  the  recex^tion  of  Christ  and  the  benefits  of  His  work 
of  salvation,  is  the  transition  inwardly  from  the  state 
of  nature  to  that  of  grace,  externally  from  the  world 
to  the  Church.  This  last  is  the  community  of  the  re- 
deemed. Identification  with  Christ  inwardly  by  a 
spirit  of  grateful  devotion  and  loyal  obedience,  out- 
wardly by  baj)tismal  profession,  is  demanded  of  each 
one  of  His  followers.  Thus  associated  in  His  name, 
they  are  to  do  His  work,  to  bring  men  under  His  do- 
minion— in  other  words,  they  are  to  enlarge  the 
Church  or  discipleship  until  it  includes  the  race,  all 
nations.  It  is  a  visible  institution  rooted  in  invisible 
and  spiritual  realities.  And  it  looks  forward  in  its 
results  to  the  spiritual  conquest  of  the  world. 

The  XIX.  Article,  as  those  that  follow,  is  occu- 
pied with  this  visible  Church.  Its  notes  or  features 
are  profession  of  Christ,  the  preaching  of  the  joure 


220       THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS. 

Word  of  God,  sacraments  duly  administered,  errancy 
in  doctrine  of  some  of  the  most  eminent  of  the  early 
'churches,  as  also  that  of  Rome.  Its  authority,  in  this 
respect,  while  affirmed  in  Articles  XX.  and  XXXIV., 
is,  at  the  same  time,  limited  by  that  of  Scripture  ;  the 
same  implication  being  contained  in  the  XXI.  Article 
of  the  English  Church  on  General  Councils.  A  minis- 
try is  contemplated  in  Article  XXIII.,  the  necessity  of 
a  lawful  call  and  sending,  by  the  duly  authorized  men 
for  that  purpose,  and  in  Article  XXXVI.  the  Episco- 
pal consecrations  and  ordinations  of  the  book  of  Ed- 
ward V  I.  are  accepted  as  free  from  superstition,  and  to 
be  used  in  the  English  Church.  But  there  is  no 
affirmation  as  to  its  exclusive  effect,  or  as  to  its  bearing 
'upon  the  validity  of  orders  received  elsewhere.  The 
men  who  drew  up  these  articles,  as  a  matter  of  historic 
fact,  accepted  these  orders — Roman,  Lutheran,  and 
Reformed — and  with  the  two  latter  had  communion. 

The  distinction  is  frequently  made  of  the  Church 
visible  and  invisible.  Dean  Field  uses  these  terms. 
Hooker  uses  the  word  mystical  for  invisible  ;  but  in 
his  discussion  it  comes  to  the  same  thing.  The  object 
in  this  distinction  seems  to  have  been  to  affirm  the  real 
church-membership  of  individuals  and  communities, 
expelled  by  persecution  or  otherwise  from  the  visible 
church, — those  without  organization,  or  with  but  an  im- 
perfect one.  The  idea  was  the  real,  mystic,  invisible, 
spiritual  connection  with  Christ,  of  all  His  real,  believ- 
ing people,  not  destroyed  by  anj^thing  of  a  mere  out- 
ward character.     Visibly  cut  off,  invisibly  they  were 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.       221 

living  in  Him.  The  visible  Church  would  thus  be  the 
aggregate  of  all  visible  communities,  constituting  one 
outward  whole.  The  invisible  would  be  the  aggregate 
of  all  individuals,  of  all  genuine  Christians,  those  in 
the  visible  Church,  as  those,  if  any,  outside.  The 
purposes  of  this  distinction,  while  expressing  an  im- 
l^ortant  truth,  have  largely  passed  away. 

Another  "mode  of  looking  at  this  subject  would  be 
under  the  aspects  of  the  Church  ideal  and  the  Church 
actual.  Without  the  use  of  these  terms,  we  find  the 
facts  which  they  imply  in  the  New  Testament.  There 
is,  in  the  epistles,  at  times,  to  the  contemplation  of  the 
apostles,  a  glorious  Church,  as  yet  unrealized — the 
"  spotless  bride  of  Christ,"  without  defect  or  excres- 
cence ;  the  Church,  what  it  ought  to  be  inwardly  and 
outwardly.  At  the  same  time  they  si^eak,  and  legis- 
late for,  and  give  direction  to  actual  churches.  Some 
of  these  are  defective  in  doctrine  ;  others  seem  to  be 
only  partially  organized  as  to  their  ministry  ;  and 
others  with  moral  defects  among  their  membership. 
As  associated  in  the  j)rofession  by  baptism,  of  Chris- 
tian fellowship,  they  are  all  spoken  of  and  treated  as 
churches.  So  is  it  now.  The  ideal  is  not  as  yet 
actualized.  The  actuals,  even  the  best,  fall  far  short 
of  it.  Some  imagine  that  they  are,  in  outward  organ- 
ism. But  beyond  that,  the  claim  has  not  been  ven- 
tured. A  clear  view  of  what  that  ideal  involves  and 
demands,  and  the  earnest  effort  to  its  attainment,  out- 
wardly and  inwardly,  would  be  one  of  the  death  blows 
to  unloving  sectarianism.     The  great  and  proper  work. 


222  THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS. 

for  eacli  one  of  these  forms  of  the  actual,  is  to  be  striv- 
ing and  making  effort  for  the  Divine  ideal. 

Christian  Sacraments, 

This  w^ord  '^  sacrament,"  in  connection  with  Chris- 
tianity, first  occui's  in  a  heathen  writer.  Pliny,  in  his 
letter  to  Trajan,  speaks  of  the  Christians  as  binding 
themselves  by  a  sacramentnm,  or  pledge,  to  certain 
actions  or  courses.  Whether,  in  any  way,  it  was  thus 
associated  with  the  reception  of  the  Lord's  Supper,  it  is 
impossible,  from  the  connection,  to  determine.  As  the 
sui^per  was  usually  a  part  of  the  Christian  services,  it 
may  have  been  that  part  of  it  to  which  this  expression 
had  reference.  Both  in  this  and  in  the  other  sacra- 
ment— bai^tism — there  is  involved  one  of  the  elements 
of  the  sacramentnm — the  military  oath  by  which  the 
soldier  bound  himself  to  a  course  of  fidelity  to  his 
leader.  Converts  from  the  world  were  baptized,  sacra- 
mented,  pledged  to  a  loyal  discipleship.  Disciples  in 
the  supper,  so  to  sj)eak,  renewed  their  sacrament,  re- 
minded themselves  and  others  of  their  assumed  obliga- 
tions to  the  redeeming  Master,  and  in  Him  to  each  other. 
Both  originally  instituted  by  the  Master,  rested  upon 
His  supreme  authority.  Whatever  may  be  said  of  other 
institutions  of  an  edifying  or  appropriate  character,  as 
related  to  certain  acts  of  religious  service,  those  say  of 
confirmation  or  ordination,  their  ground  of  acceptance 
and  usage  is  simi^ly  tlieir  adaptation  to  the  ends  pro- 
posed. They  want  the  element  present  in  baptism  and 
the  Lord's  Supper,  of  specific  Divine  institution.     The 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.       223 

essentials  of  a  Christian  sacrament,  not  only  in  tlie 
judgment  of  Protestant  theologians,  but  even  in  that 
of  the  Council  of  Trent,  must  include  this,  its  Divine 
institution.  Having  a  form  of  words  and  some  material 
element  to  which  they  are  related,  they  become  author- 
itative as  divinely  apj^tointed. 

Sacrament  of  Baptism. 

Baptism,  as  the  initiative  pledge  of  Christian  disciple- 
ship,  rests,  of  course,  upon  the  specific  institution  (Matt. 
28 :  19  ;  Mark  16 :  15,  16)  of  the  Master.  The  inter- 
pretation of  the  command  thus  given  is  afforded  in  the 
lecord  of  apostolic  action  during  the  next  thirty  years 
following.  Such  baptism  pledges  to  faith  in  Him  and 
devotion  to  Him,  as  fully  manifested,  not  only  in  His 
teaching,  but  in  His  atoning  work,  His  attesting  resur- 
rection and  triumphant  ascension  :  as  the  Son  of  Man, 
the  Son  of  God  :  and  thus,  Avith  the  Father  and  the 
Holy  Ghost,  in  the  Trinity  of  the  Divine  Unity. 

Baptisms  prior  to  this  were,  so  to  speak,  of  an  intro- 
ductory character.  Their  earliest  forms  were  in  the 
symbolic  washings  of  the  Levitical  system.  Later  was 
the  proselyte  baptism  of  heathen  converts,  preceding 
the  circumcision,  by  which  they  were  admitted  to  the 
privileges  of  Judaism.  John's  baptism,  later  on,  was 
connected  with  the  announcement  of  the  Messiah  and 
His  kingdom,  and  to  the  higher  baptism  that  Messiah 
Himself  would  administer.  Still  later  was  the  baptism 
by  our  Lord's  disciples  (comx^are  John.  3  :  22  ;  4:2),  in 
connection  with  His  actual  manifestation.     No  intima- 


224  THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS. 

tion  is  afforded  as  to  the  baptism  of  the  ax)ostles  them- 
selves. Some  of  them,  as  disciples  of  John,  had  received 
his  baptism,*  That  of  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  fire, 
fitted  them  to  administer  that  of  water  to  others. 

As  to  its  nsage,  as  already  intimated,  it  begins  on 
the  day  of  Pentecost,  and  we  find  it  in  connection  with 
converts  as  subsequently  made.  Doubt  has  been  sug- 
gested as  to  whether  the  formula  (Matt,  28  :  19)  was 
always  used.  It  is  not  specifically  mentioned  ;  in 
some  cases,  too,  persons  are  spoken  of  as  baptized  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  Both  of  these  facts,  how- 
ever, are  perfectly  consistent  with  its  usage.  The 
natural  probability  is  heavily  against  its  non-usage. 
As,  moreover,  it  continued  in  the  ages  following  in 
such  usages,  and  the  apostles,  and  other  creeds  really 
seem  to  be  this  formula,  expanded  for  catechetical 
instruction,  preceding  baptism,  we  may  regard  the  rite 
and  its  form  of  words  as  perpetuated  through  the 
subsequent  ages  of  Christianity  until  the  present.  No 
one  anticipates  that  a  change  in  this  respect  is  now  pos- 
sible. 

Two  points  have  arisen  as  to  its  administration  of  a 
controversial  character. 

One  of  these  is  as  to  its  manner,  whether  by  immer- 
sion, pouring,  or  sprinkling,  and  as  to  whether  the 
original  manner,  if  undoubted,  is  essential  to  the  sac- 
rament, and,  of  course,  to  Christian  discipleship.  The 
main  issue  is  as  to  the  last.     Many  who  think  immer- 

*  See  Robert  Hall's  discussion  as  to  the  bearing  of  this  upon  close 
communion,  vol.  i.,  p.  304. 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.       225 

sion  probably  the  original  form,  do  not  regard  it  as 
essential,  the  great  truth  symbolized  in  all  these 
modes  being  this  essential.  Others  regard  it  as  both 
the  original  form,  and  the  only  valid  one.  Under  some- 
thing like  the  distinction  of  the  visible  and  invisible 
Church,  these  last  recognize  the  distinction  of  baptized 
and  unbaptized  Christian  believers. 

So,  too,  as  to  the  subjects  of  baptism.  Some  affirm 
that  it  is  only  for  adults,  callable  of  assuming  its 
obligations  ;  others,  and  the  great  majority  of  Chris- 
tendom, admitting  the  child  upon  the  faith  and  j^ledges 
of  the  Christian  parent,  look  forward  in  due  time  to  his 
own  assumption  of  them.  This  is  in  the  line  of  Divine 
dealing,  under  the  old  dispensations,  patriarchal  and 
Mosaic  ;  and  j^eculiarly  in  sympathy  with  the  si^irit 
and  declaration  of  the  Master  Himself  as  to  little  chil- 
dren. 

One  other  point  needs  to  be  noted — the  proper  ad- 
ministrator. Ordinarily  it  has  been  held,  the  persons 
appointed  by  the  Church  for  this  duty.  The  apostles, 
if  they  themselves  baptized,  seem,  in  some  cases,  to 
have  turned  it  over  to  subordinate  officers.  And  St. 
Paul  speaks  of  the  inf requency  of  his  own  personal 
baptizing.  At  certain  periods,  lay  persons,  by  Church 
appointment,  largely  administered  the  sacrament.  The 
principle  seems  to  have  been  accepted  that  the  adminis- 
trator might  be  of  the  order,  but  not  necessarily  of 
the  essence,  of  the  sacrament.  Baptism,  in  decorous 
form,  with  water,  in  the  name  of  the  adorable  Trinity, 
it  was  ruled,  ought  not  to  be  repeated.     If  doubt  as  to 


226  THE   CHURCH  AND   SACRAMENTS. 

any  of  tliese,  then  rei^etition  or  liypotketical  form  of 
administration.    Passing  from  these  to  the  more  xoromi 
nent  question  of  the  effects  of  tiie  sacrament7^we"inay 
talve  tlie  various  points   enumerated   in  the   XXVIJ. 
Article.     First,  as  to  adults. 

(a)  Baptism  is  a  sign  of  profession  and  mark  of 
difference  between  Christians  and  non- Christians. 

{b)  Baptism,  rightly  received,  is  a  sign  of  regenera- 
tion or  new  birth  ;  is  an  instrument  of  grafting  into  the 
Church  ;  is  a  visible  signing  and  sealing  of  the  Divine 
promises  of  forgiveness  of  sin  and  of  Divine  adoi:)tion. 

(c)  Baptism  thus  rightly  received,  confirms  faith  and 
increases  grace. 

The  statement  a,  it  will  be  seen,  is  unconditional. 
It  is  the  ecclesiastical  opi(,s  operatum  of  all  baptized 
in  due  form. 

But  b  and  c  are  conditional.  In  other  words,  there 
is  the  transition  from  the  actual  baptism  of  a  to  the 
ideal  of  b  and  c  ;  from  the  baptism  that  may  be  in  any 
particular  case,  to  that  which  ought  to  be  in  all.  Evi- 
dently the  real  spiritual  blessing  of  baptism  here,  is  not 
in  the  objective  sacrament  alone,  but  in  the  subjective 
recipiency  of  the  person  baptized.  As  in  the  article 
on  the  Lord's  Supper,  the  recei^tion  of  the  spiritual 
blessing  is  made  to  dei:)end  upon  its  faithful,  its  believ- 
ing reception. 

But,  then,  it  is  asked,  does  the  validity  of  the  sacra- 
ment depend  upon  the  subjective  condition  of  the  re- 
cipient ?  Not  at  all.  This  is  to  confound  two  things 
that  in  themselves  are  distinct.     The  sacrament,  prop- 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.  227 

erly  administered,  in  this,  has  its  ecclesiastical  validity. 
Supposing  its  recii:»ient,  coming  to  a  cognizance  of  the 
fact,  six  months  or  twenty  years  afterward,  that  he  had 
received  it  in  a  worldly  or  unbelieving  spirit,  he  would 
not  need  to  be  baptized  again.  That  ecclesiastical,  outer 
part  is  done.  And  he,  now  seeing  what  it  means  and 
demands,  must  endeavor  to  meet  its  obligations.  Ordi- 
nances do  not  depend  for  their  validity  uj)on  inward 
states.  If  so,  they  could  never  be  certified  ;  but  the 
inward,  personal  experiences  of  their  benefits  do.  The 
inward  blessing  of  the  sacrament  is,  in  all  cases,  as  is 
the  faith  of  him  who  jDarticixoates  in  it. 

The  same  jDrinciple  also  ax^plies  to  the  long-contest- 
edTand  complicated  issue  of  the  spiritual  regeneration, 
associated  with  infant  baptism.  Here,  as  in  the  adult, 
is  the  actual  and  the  ideal  baptism.  In  some  particular 
actual,  the  outward  rite  is  duly  administered  ;  but  the 
parents  and  sponsors  are  thorough  worldlings,  and  the 
conditions  of  the  after-faith  of  the  child,  and  that 
after-faith  itself,  have  no  existence.  In  such  case 
there  is  ecclesiastical  regeneration.  In  another  i^ar- 
ticular  actual,  is  also  the  ideal.  The  child  is  prayer- 
fully and  believingly  consecrated  ;  and  his  response  of 
faith  as  he  comes  to  the  capacity  for  its  exercise,  se- 
cures the  -blessing.  Here  is  the  spiritual  as  well  as 
the  ecclesiastical  regeneration.  The  service,  in  its 
terms,  assumes  that  it  is  the  ideal  in  all  cases,  and 
predicates  the  result.  But  that  result,  as  with  the 
adult,  is  conditional.  If  the  baptism  is  what  it  ought 
to  be,  so  the  blessing  ;  if  not,  otherwise. 


228  THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS. 

The  Sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper. 

The  sacrament  of  the  supper,  having  its  special  ref- 
erence to  Christ's  sacrificial  work,  as  does  that  of  bap- 
tism to  the  transforming  agency  of  the  Blessed  Spirit, 
in  i)oint  of  time,  as  to  its  institution,  preceded  that  of 
baptism.  It  was  to  the  twelve,  not  to  the  whole  disci- 
pleship,  on  the  night  preceding  the  crucifixion.  That 
it  was  intended  for  all,  comes  out  later  in  apostolic 
practice  ;  the  apostles,  in  its  first  institution,  repre- 
senting the  whole  body  of  the  discipleship.  The 
breaking  of  bread  in  the  Acts  of  the  Aj^ostles,  and  the 
allusions  to  it  in  the  epistles,  as  also  the  later  prac- 
tice of  the  early  Church,  show  its  observance  ;  and 
there  can  be  no  reasonable  doubt  of  its  continuance 
until  the  present  time.  Modifications  as  to  its  mean- 
ing and  efficacy,  and  the  manner  of  its  reception  and 
benefit,  have  come  in  during  the  intervening  periods. 
But,  whatever  the  character  of  these,  whether  regard- 
ed as  a  sacrifice  or  the  memorial  of  a  sacrifice,  whether 
as  a  symbolic  representation  of  Christ's  body,  or 
Christ's  body  substantially  or  materially  present,  its 
observance  continues  unbroken.  In  some  of  these 
forms  or  other,  the  efi'ort  is  made  to  show  forth 
"  Christ's  death  until  He  come."  We  may  say,  with 
little  doubt  or  hesitation,  that  wherever  and  so  long  as 
Christianity  lasts,  this  sacrament  will  be  continued  in 
its  observance. 

Two  deeply  interesting  issues  present  themselves  in 
connection  with  this  sacrament.     The  first  has  refer- 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.       229 

ence  to  its  sacramental  nature  ;  the  second,  to  the  man- 
nerof  its  efficacy.  The  reply  to  the  first  to  some  de- 
gree anticipates  the  second.  They  may,  however,  for 
clearness  be  distinguished. 

First,  then,  is  the  Lord's  Snx)per  a  sacrifice?  Is 
such  sacrifice  that  of  the  cross  repeated,  or  one  made 
on  the  night  of  the  supper  ?  *  If  so,  there  is  nothing 
of  it  in  the  language  of  the  institution.  ' '  Take,  eat, 
this  is  My  body,"  is  the  language  of  the  Master  ; 
"  drink  ye  all  of  it  ;  for  this  is  My  blood  of  the  New 
Testament,  which  is  slied  for  many  for  the  remission  of 
sins"  (Matt.  26  :  26,  28  ;  Mark  14  :  22,  24  ;  Luke  22  :  19, 
20).  "  The  cup  of  blessing,"  says  the  apostle,  "  which 
we  bless,  is  it  not  the  communion,  the  common  partici- 
pation," of  the  blood  of  Christ  ?  The  bread  which  we 
break,  is  it  not  the  "  communion  of  the  body  of 
Christ"  ?  ''  The  Lord  Jesus  took  bread,  and  when  He 
had  given  thanks,  He  brake  it,  and  said,  Take,  eat ;  this 
is  My  body,  which  is  broken  for  you  ;  do  this  in  re- 
membrance of  Me."  "  This  cup  is  the  New  Testament 
in  My  blood  ;"  "  this  do,  as  oft  as  ye  drink  it,  in  re- 
membrance of  Me."  "  Ye  do  show  forth  the  Lord's 
death."  (See  1  Cor.  10:16,  17;  11:23,  24.)  These 
are  the  insjpired  accounts  of  the  institution,  and  its  sig- 
nificance. In  none  of  them  is  there  allusion  to  its  sac- 
rificial character.  "Christ,"  says  the  apostle,  "our 
Passover,  is  sacrificed  for  us."  But  here,  again,  there 
is  no  allusion  to  any  such  sacrifice  anticipated  or  re- 

*  These  need  to  be  distinguished.     They  are  so  in  the  doctrine  of  the 
mass. 


230  THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMEKTS. 

X)eated  in  tlie  Lord's  Supper.  The  idea  is  unscrii)- 
tural  ;  in  the  light  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  anti- 
scriptural.  The  one  Priest  and  the  one  Sacrifice,  in 
their  perfection  and  finality,  exclude  the  possibility  of 
any  other  or  others.  Just  as  the  old  Jewish  and 
heathen  conception,  that  a  minister  of  religion  must 
be  a  sacrificing  j)riest,  worked  its  way  into  the  declin- 
ing Christianity  of  the  third  and  fourth  century,  so 
did  this  of  the  Lord' s  Supper  as  a  re-enacted  sacrifice  : 
sometimes  as  the  sacrifice  on  the  cross  repeated  ;  some- 
times, as  in  the  Trentine  doctrine  of  the  mass,  the  repe- 
tition either  of  that  on  the  cross,  or  of  one  offered  on  the 
night  of  the  institution  of  the  sujoper. 

But  may  it  not,  it  has  been  asked — may  it  not  be 
called  a  memorial  sacrifice  ?  In  some  of  the  secondary 
senses  of  the  word  sacrifice,  and  as  descrijptive  of  the 
state  of  mind  of  the  recipients,  doubtless  such  forms 
of  expression  may  be  used.  They  are  very  apt,  eventu- 
ally, to  lead  astray.  Much  safer  and  more  scriptural 
is  the  language  of  the  Church  Catechism — "  a  remem- 
brance of  the  sacrifice  of  the  death  of  Christ,  and  of 
the  benefits  which  we  receive  thereby  ;' '  not  ' '  a 
memorial  sacrifice,"  but  "a  memorial  of  a  sacrifice." 
So  also  the  XXVIII.  Article  calls  it  "  a  sacrament,"  a 
pledged  assurance  "  of  our  redemption  by  Christ's 
death."  Just  as  baptism,  a  divinely  covenanted  sac- 
ramentum,  oath,  or  pledge  of  the  regenerative  grace  of 
the  Blessed  Spirit  to  those  in  faith  seeking  it,  so  is  the 
supx')er  of  the  redemptive  efficacy  of  Christ's  work,  to 
those  in  like  faith  relying  upon  it  for  salvation. 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.        231 

Often  identified  with  this  last,  bnt  really  of  very 
different  significance,  is  "  the  sacrifice  of  thanksgiv- 
ing," to  which  allnsion  is  made  in  the  communion  ser- 
vice. Here  the  sacrifice  is  not  one  of  the  sacramental 
elements,  but  of  the  persons  thankfully  receiving 
them.  It  is  the  great  body  of  the  spiritual  priesthood, 
in  grateful  remembrance  of  the  sacrifice  of  Christ, 
thankfully  offering  themselves  to  Him  and  His  service 
in  return.  This  is  the  spiritual  sacrifice  pertaining  to 
the  whole  redeemed  life,  but  here  solemnly  recog- 
nized in  its  obligatory  character  and  gratefully  re- 
affirmed :  "  The  sacrifice  of  praise  to  God,  the  fruit  of 
lives,  our  earnest  devotion  and  grateful  service." 

Connected  with  this  question  of  the  sacrifice,  in  the 
sacrament  of  the  supper,  is  that  of  the  presence.  This 
word  presence,  which  has  given  so  much  trouble,  does 
not  occur  in  our  communion  service,  in  our  Articles  or 
Catechism,  or  in  Scripture.  In  some  of  their  expres- 
sions, however,  this  issue  is  implicated. 

The  great  difficulty,  in  this  matter,  is  the  ambiguity 
of  many  of  the  terms  employed.  Some,  however,  are 
undoubted  as  to  their  single  meaning.  There  is,  for 
instance,  the  affirmation  of  {a)  the  transubstantiated 
presence  ;  (J))  the  consubstantiated  presence  ;  (c)  the 
substantiated  presence  ;  {d )  the  representative  or  sym- 
bolic presence. 

All  these  are  objective  to  the  recipient,  and  whatever 
his  moral  and  spiritual  condition.  In  the  first  three, 
Christ's  body  is  corporally  present  in  the  elements. 
In  the  third,  it  is  so  symbolically  and  representatively. 


232  THE   CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS. 

But  there  are  otlier  forms  of  expression  descriptive 
of  tliis  presence,  full  of  ambiguity. 

"  Real  presence"  mostly,  for  the  first  century  after 
the  Reformation,  the  equivalent  of  "  corporal," 
"transubstantiated.''  Sometimes ,  now,  in  the  same 
sense  ;  sometimes  as  opposed  to  fictitious  or  imagi- 
nary. With  some,  again,  the  equivalent  of  spiritual ; 
with  others,  some  kind  of  corporal. 

' '  Spiritual  presence. ' '  This  is  usually  the  equivalent 
of  Christ's  presence  in  the  elements  to  the  faith  of  the 
recipient ;  the  suffering  Christ  in  His  sacrifice  jDresent  to 
those  appropriating  the  benefit  of  that  sacrifice ;  and 
Avitli  this,  the  presence  of  the  glorified  Christ,  min- 
istered by  His  Spirit  to  His  believing  people,  and  thus 
fulfilling  His  j^romise  of  being  with  them,  when  as- 
sembled in  His  name.  Faith,  it  may  be  said,  com- 
bines these  aspects  of  the  absent  Saviour,  and  brings 
Him  to  loving  contemplation  and  communion. 

"  Sacramental  jiresence"  is  a  term  of  more  recent 
usage.  It  may  mean  any  of  the  others.  Recently  it 
is  a  form  in  which  transubstantiation,  or  some  of  its 
modifications,  is  asserted.  All  forms  of  such  presence 
are.  of  course,  in  some  sense  sacramental. 

"  Substantial  presence."  The  effort  in  this  seems  to 
be  to  affirm  the  fact  of  the  real  bodily  presence,  without 
attempting  to  describe  its  mode,  as  is  done  in  the  terms 
trans  and  consubstantiation.  As,  however,  under  sub- 
stantial it  affirms  corporal,  it  has  all  the  difficulties  of 
both  of  these  :  body,  that  which  in  its  very  definition 
is  outlined,  without  outline,  ubiquitous. 


THE   CHURCH   AI^D   SACRAMENTS.  233 

Amid  all  these  diversities  of  statement  and  apparent 
difference  of  view,  it  may  be  said  that  they  are  but 
variations  of  two,  under  which  they  may  all  be  com- 
j)rehended  :  the  spiritual  and  the  corporal.  In  the 
first  is  the  presence  of  Christ's  body  and  blood,  objec- 
tive, symbolized,  represented  in  the  elements ;  the 
presence  subjective  of  the  loersonal  Christ,  ministered 
by  His  Spirit,  to  the  spirit,  the  mind  and  heart  of  His 
faithful  disciple.  In  the  second  is  the  presence  of 
Christ's  body  and  blood  objective,  corporally  transub- 
stantiated, consubstantiated,  or  substantiated  in  the 
elements  ;  there  is  the  subjective  loresence  it  may  be  to 
faith,  but  also  certainly  to  the  bodily  organs  of  those 
receiving,  containing,  and  conveying  the  grace  which 
it  signifies,  when  that  grace  is  not  positively  resisted. 
These  are  the  two  systems.  Many  of  the  expressions 
noted  are  intended  to  avoid  either  ;  to  find  a  tertmui 
quid,  and  thus  keep  clear  of  what  are  regarded  ex- 
tremes of  both.  In  some  cases,  too,  theological  and 
ecclesiastical  experts  manage  to  keep  up  the  appear- 
ance of  such  mediate  position.  But  their  unsophisti- 
cated pupils  are  more  consistent.  The  teacher,  in 
many  cases,  is  able  to  halt  in  the  middle  of  a  syl- 
logism. But  the  pupil,  in  his  simplicity,  goes  on  to 
the  conclusion.  Calvin  and  the  English  Reformers,  in 
their  effort  to  find  a  harmonizing  statement  for  the  Lu- 
therans and  Zwinglians,  were  not  always  perfectly  con- 
sistent. Such  inconsistency,  however,  does  not  appear 
in  the  Articles  and  standards. 

While  the  diversity  and  strife  of  this  subject  has 


234  THE   CHURCH   AND   SACRAMENTS. 

been  one  of  tlie  reproaches  of  Christendom,  it  may,  at 
the  same  time,  be  nrged,  and  truthfully,  that  it  indi- 
cates the  deep  interest  as  to  all  particulars  of  the 
Christian  Church  in  this  solemn  ordinance  of  the  Mas- 
ter's apjwintment,  as  in  the  great  event  which  i,t  was 
intended  to  commemorate. 

Article  XXXI.  denies  in  the  most  emphatic  manner 
the  sacrificial  nature  of  the  supper,  and,  of  course,  the 
doctrine  of  the  mass.  Article  XXVIII.  condemns  tran- 
substantiation.  While  it  does  not  use  the  word  "  pres- 
ence," it  affirms  that  the  body  of  Christ,  represented 
in  the  bread,  is  given,  taken,  and  received  only  after  a 
heavenly  and  spiritual  manner  ;  and  that  faith  is  the 
medium  or  means  of  reception.  If  any  kind  of  pres- 
ence be  thus  implied,  "spiritual"  would  best  ex- 
press it.  Of  course  the  only  kind  of  presence  in 
dispute  is  that  of  Christ's  body.  His  human  na- 
ture. In  His  Divine  nature  He  is,  of  course,  Omni- 
X3resent.  The  difficulty  with  most  of  the  affirma- 
tions of  bodily  j)resence  is  that  of  ubiquity,  really 
monophysitism. 

The  further  question  has  been  raised  as  to  which 
body  of  our  Blessed  Lord — that  of  the  humiliation  or 
that  of  the  exaltation — is  present  in  any  of  these  forms 
in  the  supper.  Strictly  speaking,  there  is  no  which  in 
this  matter.  The  idiov  Goopia^  "the  identical  body" 
of  our  Lord,  as  of  that  of  His  people,  is  the  same  in 
its  exaltation,  as  in  its  humiliation.  Manifestly,  how- 
ever, the  body  represented  in  the  broken  bread  and 
the  poured-out  wine,  is  that  which  suffered  oij  the  cross. 


THE  CHURCH  AND  SACRAMENTS.       235 

seen  by  faith  as  thus  represented.  That  same  faith, 
however,  sees  that  same  body  now  exalted  at  the  right 
hand  of  the  Father.  But  more  living,  and  closer  still, 
to  that  faith,  is  the  living,  personal  Christ,  according 
to  His  promise,  and  by  His  Spirit  revealed  as  present 
to  His  believing  disciple. 

With  these  two  questions  of  the  sacrificial  character 
of  the  Lord's  Supper,  and  the  manner  of  His  presence, 
is  that  of  its  sacramental  benefit  or  efficacy.  These,  as 
noted  in  Articles  XXV.  and  XXVIII.,  are  twofold  : 
those  of  an  ecclesiastical,  and  those  of  a  moral  and 
spiritual  character.  The  former  are  invariable,  the 
latter  variable.  The  outward  sacrament,  duly  ad- 
ministered, includes  the  former  ex  opere  operato ; 
the  latter  come  only  in  the  proj^er  inwaid  recep- 
tion. The  supper  of  the  Lord,  for  instance,  is  ecclesi- 
astically : 

{a)  Invariably  a  sign  or  symbol  of  the  love  which 
Christians  ought  to  have  to  each  other. 

{IS)  Invariably  an  outward  sacrament  or  pledge  of 
our  redemption  by  Christ's  death. 

(c)  Morally  and  variably,  a  participation  of  Christ's 
body  and  blood— those  rightly,  worthily,  and  with 
faith  receiving,  thus  participating  ;  others  not.  Such 
particii^tion  of  the  faithful,  not  physical,  but  in  a 
heavenly  and  sx)iritual  manner,  by  faith. 

The  sacrament  in  such  case  is  a  valid,  ecclesi- 
astical transaction  to  all.  Some  who  partake,  re- 
ceive its  full  blessing.  Others  fail  so  to  do.  The 
presence  or  absence  of   faith  constitutes  the  ground 


236  THE   CHURCH  AND   SACRAMENTS. 

of  difference  as  to  results.  These  results,  objective 
and  ecclesiastical,  are  invariably  in  the  ordinance 
duly  administered.  The  subjective  spiritual  benefit 
is  variably  conditioned  upon  the  subjective  state  of 
the  recipient. 


CHAPTER  XXL 

ANGELOLOGY. 

Angelic  existence. — Early  intimations.— Manifestations  of  presence  and 
agency  in  Old  Testament  Names  of  Angels,  and  degrees.— Manifesta- 
tions in  New  Testament. — Fallen  Angels. — Their  Leader. — Demoni- 
acal possessions. 

Theology,  the  doctrine  of  God,  and  anthropology, 
the  doctrine  of  man,  have  their  immediate  and  practi- 
cal interest,  and  as  related  to  all  times  and  possible  cir- 
cumstances.    Angelology,  the  doctrine  of  other  beings 
or  intelligences,  related  to  Grod  in  one  direction,  to  man 
in  another,  so  far  as  revealed,  properly  claims  atten- 
tion.    No  specific  account  as  to  their  creation  is  given. 
"  As  sons  of  God"  (Job  38  :  7)  they  are  spoken  of  as 
rejoicing  in  the   creation  of  our  world  ;  and   in  Col. 
1  :  16,  as  among  things  invisible,  they  themselves  are 
elsew^here  spoken  of  as  created.     This  name,  ' '  angel, ' ' 
describes  their  i)eculiar  characteristic,  as  in  connection 
with  our  world,  sent  ones,  or  messengers.     "  Minister- 
ing spirits,"  says  the  apostle,  "  sent  forth  to  minister  to 
those  who  shall  be  heirs  of  salvation  (Heb.  1 :  14).    Their 
relations  Godward   and  manward  are  thus  exhibited. 
Such  statements  may  not  be  intended  to  be  exhaus- 
tive.    So  far  as  regards  one  class  of  men,  it  brings  to 
view  their  predominent  work  ;  as,  under  this,  others 


2<58  ANGELOLOGY. 

may  be  included.  It  is  one  of  which  there  are  many 
scriptural  illustrations,  and  strikingly  describes  their 
agency  in  human  affairs.  The  truth  of  the  existence 
of  such  beings,  however  in  accordance  with  what  might 
be  anticipated,  from  the  immensity  and  manifoldness 
of  creation,  is  here  grounded  upon  the  fact  of  its 
specific  revelation.  The  ultimate  question  is  as  to  the 
satisfactory  evidence  of  such  revelation. 

That  revelation  begins  at  a  very  early  period.  The 
cherubim,  keeping  the  way  of  the  tree  of  life,  living 
beings  of  some  form  or  other,  have  been  regarded  as 
the  first.  As  these,  however,  in  later  Scripture  seem 
to  be  rather  symbolic  exhibitions  of  Divine  or  natural 
powers  tlian  personal  agents,  so  they  may  be  here. 
The  earlier  manifestations  to  the  patriarchs  were 
theophanies.  But  with  these,  beginning  with  Abra- 
ham, were  the  angelic.  The  same  were  made  to  Hagar 
and  Jacob.  And  in  the  deliverance  from  Egypt,  their 
j)resence  and  agency  is  more  than  once  to  be  recog- 
nized. The  law,  indeed,  is  sjDoken  of  "  as  a  dispensa- 
tion of  angels,"  "  as  ordained  of  angels."  And  in  the 
Psalms  their  presence  is  alluded  to  in  connection  with 
its  promulgation  ;  as,  in  its  subsequent  administration 
in  the  history  of  the  chosen  people,  we  are  frequently 
told  of  their  interpositions.  Sometimes,  indeed,  the 
powers  of  nature,  winds  and  storms,  are  personified  as 
Divine  angels  or  messengers.  Sometimes,  again,  the 
expression,  "  Sons  of  God,"  ai)j)licable  to  angels,  is  ap- 
plied  to  good  men.  But  the  connection  usually  makes 
clear  what  is  intended.     While  winds  and  storms  are 


ANGELOLOGY.  239 

God's  messengers,  and  good  men  are  His  sons,  yet,  be- 
sides these,  He  has  His  angelic  sons  and  His  personal 
angelic  messengers  of  heavenly  power  and  intelligence. 
Throughout  the  Old  Testament  the  existence  and  work 
of  these  personal  angelic  beings  are  exhibited.  Toward 
its  close  we  find  specific  names — ■"  Michael,"  "  who  as 
God,"  and  "  Gabriel,"  "  man  of  God" — given  to  two 
of  them.  Whether  the  former  of  these,  as  the  angel 
Jehovah  of  Genesis,  was  not  a  manifestation  of  the  Di- 
vine Logos  in  the  Old  Testament,  has  been  made  a  ques- 
tion. We  find  in  the  New  Testament  one  of  them 
spoken  of  as  an  archangel,  and  the  other  as  standing 
in  the  presence  of  God.  So,  again,  the  trump  of  the 
archangel  is  spoken  of  in  connection  with  the  resurrec- 
tion. But  no  specific  account  beyond  the  fact  of  pre- 
eminence is  given  as  to  what  in  this  appellation  is  fully 
implied. 

Coming  more  particularly  to  the  New  Testament,  we 
find  these  manifestations  of  angelic  agency  and  inter- 
est in  the  heirs  of  salvation.  They  herald  the  coming 
of  the  Christ,  the  promised  Deliverer  ;  warn  of  impend- 
ing dangers  to  Him  in  His  infancy  ;  minister  to  Him 
after  His  trial  in  the  wilderness.  One  is  with  Him  in 
Gethsemane.  Others  are  at  the  tomb  on  the  morning 
of  the  resurrection.  And  at  His  ascension  two  of 
them  give  assurance  of  His  visible  return  to  His  disci- 
ples and  people.  So,  too,  in  His  own  teaching,  angels 
of  little  children  are  spoken  of  as  beholding  the  face 
of  His  Father  in  heaven.  The  beggar  Lazarus  is  borne 
of  angels  to  Abraham's  bosom.     Angels  are  spoken  of 


240  AKGELOLOGY. 

as  coming  with  the  Son  of  Man  in  His  glory.  And 
more  than  twelve  legions  of  them  are  spoken  of  as  at 
His  call,  in  the  arrest  in  Gethsemane.  Angelic  i)res- 
ence  and  agency  are  thus  clearly  manifested.  The 
same  agency  comes  to  view  in  the  record  of  apostolic 
effort  and  labor.  And,  in  the  last  book  of  Scripture, 
we  find  this  agency  on  earth  as  in  heaven  in  the  great 
conflict,  "which  finally  terminates  in  the  triumph  of 
righteousness.  "  Michael  and  his  angels"  are  on  one 
side,  the  dragon  and  his  angels  on  the  other.  In  this 
conflict  there  are  also  the  beast  and  the  false  proj^het, 
representing  classes  of  men  opposing  Christ,  and  the 
saints  for  Him.  At  the  same  time,  with  these  human 
agents,  and  doing  their  part  in  the  conflict,  are  these 
angelic  ones  :  good  and  bad  men,  Michael  and  his 
angels,  and  the  dragon  and  his  angels. 

In  reference  to  all  the  manifestations  thus  far  of 
angelic  existence  and  agency,  with  one  exception  it  is 
that  of  beings  habitually  and  spontaneously  moving 
under  the  impulse  or  conformity  to  the  Divine  will : 
"  Sons  of  God,"  "  Bene  Eloliim,"  as  in  the  filial  spirit 
of  loving  obedience  that  Divine  will  controls  and  regu- 
lates all  their  movements.  They  have  thus  kept  their 
high  estate  ;  passed  safely  through  their  original  pro- 
bation, attaining  the  security  of  habitual  and  heavenly 
excellence. 

Contrasted  with  these  are  other  angelic  beings  of  a 
different  character  :  fallen  angels,  not  keeping  their 
high  estate  ;  miserable  in  their  fall,  and  hostile  to 
God,  as  also   to   His   earthly  subjects  and  creatures. 


ANGELOLOGY.  241 

Just  as  the  good  angels,  in  their  love  and  obedience  to 
Grod,  are  described  as  endeavoring  to  bless  and  benefit 
His  creature,  man,  so  the  fallen,  as  opposing  His  will 
and  endeavoring  to  injure  and  destroy  His  earthly  crea- 
tures. Distinction  must  here  be  made  as  to  the  term  evil 
angels,  especially  as  sometimes  used  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. This  may  mean  natural  agencies  of  calamity, 
as  the  pestilence,  the  storm,  the  famine.  It  may, 
again,  mean  angels  obedient  to  God,  the  instruments 
of  His  judgments  of  disaster  ;  as  when  sent  to  execute 
such  judgment  upon  Sodom  or  upon  Pharaoh  and  the 
Egyptians,  Distinct  from  these  are  angelic  beings 
morally  evil  in  character,  the  fallen  ones  to  whom  allu- 
sion has  already  been  made.  Their  existence  comes  to 
view  especially  in  the  New  Testament.  Their  leader 
and  prince,  Satan,  or  the  devil,  is  described,  in  the 
teaching  of  Jesus  and  the  apostles,  as  exercising  his 
powers  of  enticement  and  temptation  upon  men  ;  as 
opposing  the  Divine  will,  and  working  in  men  to  dis- 
obedience and  transgression.  And  intimations  are 
given  as  to  his  malignant  work  in  the  first  temptation 
of  man,  "  the  murderer  and  liar  from  the  beginning  ;" 
later,  in  the  trial  of  Job,  as  in  the  evil  influence  exert- 
ed upon  Saul.  With  him,  also,  as  his  followers,  are 
other  evil  sx)irits,  and  working  to  the  same  malignant 
and  mischievous  purposes.  As  the  work  of  Christ  was 
to  destroy  those  of  the  devil,  to  overthrow  his  king- 
dom, so  in  the  New  Testament,  the  existence  and 
agency  of  Satan  and  his  angels  are  more  fully  brought 
out  and  exhibited.     The  conflict,  in  its  various  forms 


242  ANGELOLOGY. 

and  stages  as  it  goes  on,  is  more  fully  bronght  to  view- 
in  the  Ai)ocalypse  ;  and  its  final  result  is  seen  in  tlieir 
complete  and  perfect  overtlirow.  All  enemies  are  to 
be  put  under  Christ's  feet.  This  includes  not  only  all 
opposing  human  agency,  but  that  which  is  Satanic  and 
diabolical. 

Having  its  connection  with  this  subject  is  the  very 
difiicult  one  of  demoniacal  possession.  One  mode  of 
getting  rid  of  this  difficulty  is  to  identify  these  posses- 
sions with  cases  of  ordinary  insanity.  Doubtless  in 
some  of  the  cases,  phenomena  of  insanity  are  exhibit- 
ed. Perhaps  insanity  was  one  of  its  usual  accompani- 
ments. In  one  case  a  father,  bringing  his  son  to  our 
Lord,  speaks  of  him  as  a  lunatic  ;  and  yet,  in  the 
same  connection,  he  is  spoken  of  as  under  demoniacal 
agency.  It  has  thus  been  argued  that,  as  our  Blessed 
Lord  spoke  in  the  forms  of  expression  then  in  current 
usage,  and  as  He  did  not  stoj)  to  explain  that  the  luna- 
tic, 2£X?p^ia^oju£voi,  was  not  moon-struck,  so  with  the 
AaipiQovia^£/A8vo?,  the  supposed  demon-struck.  And 
if  the  mere  names  in  these  cases  were  all,  this  ex- 
planation might  be  satisfactory.  There  are,  however, 
other  accompaniments  which  seem  to  present  to  it  in- 
superable difficulty.  Our  Lord  not  only  spoke  of  the 
demons,  but  to  them,  and  commanded  their  departure. 
The  demons  knew  Him  and  His  authority.  His  para- 
ble of  the  unclean  spirit  going  out  of  a  man  and  seek- 
ing rest,  and  finding  none,  and  of  his  re-entrance  with 
others  worse  into  the  empty  habitation,  and  His  lan- 
guage in  reply  to  the  charge  of  casting  out  demons  by 


ANGELOLOGY.  248 

Satanic  assistance — all  show  that  we  are  beyond  the 
region  of  mere  insanity.  It  is  a  revelation  of  the 
spirit  world,  nniqne  and  peculiar.  And,  as  such,  how- 
ever mysterious,  and  as  only  mysterious,  must  be  ac- 
cepted. 

The  only  question,  in  such  case,  is,  Are  there  anal- 
ogous facts  natural,  so  that  the  mystery  does  not  in- 
volve contradiction  ?  Regarding  the  demoniac  as  ac- 
countable—accountable for  being  in  such  state,  and 
thus,  to  some  degree,  for  his  actions  in  such  state — the 
analogous  cases  are  around  us  in  abundance.  The 
demon  of  strong  •  drink,  of  opium,  of  licentious  indul- 
gence, often  loroduces  a  condition  as  wretched  and  irra- 
tional as  that  of  the  demonized  in  the  New  Testament. 
If  this,  their  condition,  was  thus  the  result  of  some 
habit  of  previous  indulgence,  the  mystery  of  an  evil 
spirit  coming  in  and  taking  possession  of  such  a  man 
remains  ;  but  the  moral  difficulty  disappears.  It  is 
the  act  of  the  man,  under  Divine  permission  and 
arrangement,  bringing  its  results  in  this  form. 

So,  too,  if  we  suppose  the  demon  possessed  not  ac- 
countable for  his  condition,  or  as  in  a  condition  in  which 
his  accountability  has  passed  away.  Analogous  cases 
we  find  all  around,  in  the  X3henomena  of  ordinary  in- 
sanity and  other  diseases,  under  the  operation  of  the 
law  of  heredity.  Insanity  is  something  with  which  we 
are  familiar,  and  we  imagine  we  know  something  about 
it.  But  its  problems,  its  moral  problems,  who  will 
undertake  to  solve  ?  Prior  to  experience,  how  violent- 
ly improbable  that  rational  beings,  men,  too,  of  the 


244  ANGELOLOGY. 

highest  order  of  intellect,  could  come  into  such  condi- 
tion ?  On  the  other  hand,  how  much  like  the  demon- 
ized,  the  self-made  victim  of  vicious  habit  and  indul- 
gence ?  How  often  similar  result  seen  in  the  innocent 
inheritors  of  their  vicious  constitutions  ?  Men,  again, 
brutalize  themselves,  and  they  come  into  the  condition 
and  even  the  diseases  and  habits  of  the  brute  creation. 
We  are  fearfully  and  wonderfully  made.  And  while 
there  is  moral  safety  to  the  upright,  the  result  of  its 
opposite,  and  in  all  directions,  is  incalculable.  The 
demoniacal  i)OSsession,  a  great  supernatural  mystery, 
has  its  many  natural  analogies.  Specially  manifested 
during  the  ministry  of  Him  whose  mission  was  to  de- 
stroy the  works  of  the  devil,  still,  even  as  belonging  to 
that  special  dispensation  of  the  past,  it  has  its  present 
lessons  of  profitable  suggestion. 


CHAPTER   XXII. 

ESCHATOLOGY. 

Its  particulars  matter  of  pure  revelation. — The  final  transition. — Resur- 
rection, Judgment. — The  two  great  classes. 

The  knowledge  thus  spoken  of,  in  one  sense  a 
knowledge  of  tlie  end,  in  another  is  a  knowledge  of 
that  which  is  without  end,  the  world  of  endless  reali- 
ties. Even  as  related  to  the  events  closing  the  present 
condition  of  things,  the  end  of  earthly  existence,  with 
its  relations,  such  knowledge  is  dependent  upon  spe- 
cific revelation.  As,  in  such  knowledge,  we  pass  into 
the  region  of  the  supernatural,  so  it  is  only  in  a  sujoer- 
natural  way,  and  by  supernatural  agencies,  that  we  can 
come  to  its  attainment.  "  In  the  Gosj^el,"  says  the 
ajDostle,  "  Jesus  Christ  hath  brought  to  light  life  and 
immortality."  To  some  of  the  main  points  of  this 
revelation,  completive  of  all  that  had  gone  before,  we 
now  give  our  examination. 

In  so  doing  we  naturally  think  of  what  may  be 
called  the  divinely  indicated  transition,  from  man's 
present  to  his  future  state  of  being.  Prior  even  to 
this,  however,  is  the  deeply  interesting  truth  of  the 
nature  of  such  transition — fiom  mortality  to  immor- 
tality, from  temporal  to  eternal  existence.     "  God," 


246  ESCHATOLOGY. 

says  one  of  the  apocryphal  writers,  ''^created  man  in 
the  image  of  His  own  inmiortality."  This  is  the  con- 
stant implication  of  Scripture,  especially  of  the.  New 
Testament  Scripture.  Dying  creatures,  as  to  this 
world,  men  are  undying  in  the  world  to  which  they 
are  going.  It  is,  therefore,  the  transition  from  a  tem- 
poral to  an  eternal  existence. 

Two  facts  involved  in  that  transition  come  promi- 
nently to  view — the  resurrection  and  final  judgment. 
The  first  of  these — the  resurrection — going  back,  in  its 
assurance,  to  the  resurrection  of  Christ,  and  looking 
forward  in  its  anticipation,  to  the  fulfilment  of  His 
declarations.  As  also  to  the  exercise  of  His  Divine 
power,  it  brings  out  and  emphasizes  the  deeply  interest- 
ing truth  of  the  continuance  of  the  whole  man,  bodily  as 
well  as  spiritual,  beyond  this  present  state,  and  into 
that  which  is  beyond.  As  there  is  a  natural  body,  a 
body  adapted  to  the  conditions  of  the  present  animal 
organism,  so  there  is  a  sj)iritual  body,  adapted  to  the 
conditions  of  sj)iritual  existence.  The  body  thus,  in 
its  two  stages  or  conditions,  is  treated  and  sjioken  of 
as  the  same,  changed  and  changeable,  but  not  los- 
ing its  identity,  in  these  its  difi'erent  stages  of  exist- 
ence and  of  action.  As  it  was  with  the  Master  in 
these  respects,  so  with  His  discix)les.  He  the  first- 
fruits,  in  His  resurrection  ;  His  people,  in  the  morning 
of  the  resurrection,  the  fully  ripened  and  gathered 
harvest.  At  the  same  time,  while  emphasizing  this 
fact  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ's  people,  the  truth  is 
also  exhibited  of  that  of  the  whole  race,  "  of  the  just 


ESCHATOLOGY.  247 

and  of  the  unjust"  (Acts  24  :  15  ;  John  5  :  28,  29  ;  1 
Cor.  15  ;  1  Thess.  4  :  13,  18). 

Closely  associated  in  Divine  teaching  with  this  truth 
of  the  general  resurrection,  is  that  of  the  judgment. 
The  two  classes  arise,  the  one  to  a  resurrection  of  life, 
the  other  to  one  of  condemnation.  While  there  may 
be  difficulty  in  forming  conceptions  of  this  judgment, 
its  outward  circumstances  and  manifestations,  the 
truth  of  its  reality,  in  the  light  of  Scripture,  is  clear 
and  undoubted.  While  each  one  shall  give  an  account 
of  himself,  the  implication  is  that  it  will  be  in  connec- 
tion with  others  ;  if  not  the  whole  world  of  human 
beings  literally,  at  least  that  world  of  human  beings 
to  which  the  individual  was  related  ;  which  affected 
him,  and  which  he  affected  in  his  individual  life  and 
course  of  action.  "Every  one,"  says  the  apostle, 
"  shall  give  an  account  of  himself  to  God"  (Rom.  14  : 
12).  "  We  must  all  appear  before  the  judgment-seat 
of  Christ"  (2  Cor.  5:10).  "Before  the  Son  of  Man 
shall  be  gathered  all  nations"  (Matt.  25  :  31,  32).  "  I 
saw  the  dead,  small  and  great,  stand  before  God" 
(Rev.  20  :  12). 

And  these  two  events — resurrection  and  judgment — 
as  already  intimated,  are  the  transition  to  the  life  be- 
yond this  world.  That  existence — certainly  in  the 
New  Testament  conception,  whatever  may  be  the  ques- 
tions and  difficulties  as  to  the  teaching  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament— is  an  endless  one.  Created  in  the  image  of 
God,  renewed  in  the  image  of  Christ,  the  Son  of  God, 
man  becomes   partaker  of  Divine,   endless  existence. 


24:8  ESCHATOLoaV. 

Eternal  life  is  the  j)ortion  of  Christ's  redeemed  x)eoi)le. 
This  life,  in  its  fulness  and  blessedness,  is  not  ex- 
hausted as  to  its  meaning  in  the  words  ' '  endless  exist- 
ence." It  is  that,  and  much  more.  "  They  shall  not 
die  forever,' '  is  one  declaration  of  the  Master.  "  They 
shall  have  eternal  life,"  is  another.  The  latter  in- 
cludes the  former,  and  goes  far  beyond  and  above  it. 
It  is  endless  rest,  deliverance  for  all  that  is  evil,  and  in 
all  its  forms.  It  is  endless  life,  elevation  to  all  the 
blessedness  of  which  man  is  callable :  "  the  new 
heavens  and  the  new  earth,  wherein  dwell  righteous- 
ness ;"  the  redeemed  "  creation,"  delivered  out  of  the 
bondage  of  corruption,  translated  "  into  the  glorious 
liberty  of  the  sons  of  God."  God  created  man  in  His 
own  Divine  image.  In  the  person  of  His  well-beloved 
Son  He  assumed  man's  human  image,  that  He  might 
make  him  like  Himself,  holy,  happy,  blessed,  in  the 
full,  and  ]Derfect,  and  joyous  exercise  of  all  His  di- 
vinely given  powers  and  capacities. 

The  mournful  contrast  to  this  demands  contemx)la- 
tion  ;  the  condition  of  the  unsaved,  the  effect  of  perse- 
vering impenitence.  The  judgment  introduces  them 
into  a  world  of  condemnation  ;  and  the  prospect  is  of 
continuance.  No  prosj)ect  is  held  up  of  relief  or  re- 
mission. The  sentence  in  each  case  is  a  just  one,  in 
perfect  accordance  with  desert,  and  as  related  to  all 
kinds  and  degrees  of  evil  character.  What  will  be  the 
effect  of  such  penalty,  and  the  conditions  which  it  will 
involve,  no  specific  information  is  given.  In  view  of  the 
fearful  truth  of  such  penalty,  and  its  possibilities,  vari- 


ESCHATOLOGY.  249 

ous  replies  liave  been  ventured.  One,  for  a  long  time 
prevalent,  and  especially  of  a  popular  XDreaching  and 
conception,  was  that  it  will  make  its  subjects  morally 
worse  and  more  malignant  ;  and,  as  tlie  effect  of  tliat, 
more  miserable  and  wretched.  The  recoil  from  this 
was  universalism — sin  really  punished  in  this  world, 
and  the  race  saved  by  the  redeeming  work  for  another. 
A  modification  of  this  was  that  of  restorationism  ;  this 
after  the  administration  of  due  j)enalty  and  reforma- 
tion. Still  another  of  this  was  the  theory  of  condi- 
tional immortality ;  such  immortality  to  those  re- 
formed and  purified  under  this  joenalty,  annihilation 
to  those  under  it  failing  so  to  do.  And  still  another  : 
that  of  annihilation  to  all,  either  at  once  or  after  a 
time  of  retribution.  The  difficulty  with  all,  after  the 
first,  is  that  they  bring  to  an  end  what  is  represented 
without  termination.  And,  that  of  the  first,  is  its  con- 
flict with  the  perfections  of  the  Divine  character.  Di- 
vine penalty  is  thus  made  x>urely  and  only  productive 
of  misery  and  suffering.  The  same  course  alluded  to, 
in  connection  with  explanations  of  the  doctrine  of  the 
atonement,  has  been  pursued  here — that  of  looking  at 
only  one  attribute  of  Divine  x)erfection.  Strict  justice, 
perfect  righteousness,  is  the  attribute  present  in  such 
penalty.  Is  it  the  only  one  ?  Can  this  be  affirmed  ?  God 
is  just  ;  but  He  is  also  wise  and  loving.  Even  in  His 
strange  work  of  inflicting  punishment  He  does  not  and 
cannot,  deny  Himself,  divest  Himself  of  any  of  His 
perfections.  While  He  cannot  look  upon  iniqidty  but 
with  abhorrence,  lie  cannot  look  upon  suffering  but 


250  ESCHATOLOGY. 

with  interest  aucl  compassion.  With  the  justice  that 
chastens  and  punishes  is  the  love,  the  compassion  over 
its  objects,  and  the  necessity  of  its  exercise.  "If  1 
make  my  bed  in  hell,  Thou  art  there  also."  He  is 
there  in  justice  ;  but  also  in  compassion,  in  the  inter- 
est of  love  over  the  suffering  even  of  the  evil-doer. 
This  overwhelming  j^roblem,  with  our  imperfect  com- 
prehension of  what  it  involves,  we  must  and  can  leave 
with  Him.  Even  in  what  to  us  is  its  hojieless  dark- 
ness, we  know  that  He  is  ruling  and  arranging.  "  Even 
so,  Father,  to  what  is  good  in  Thy  sight." 

"  All  things  shall  be  subject  unto  Him,"  not  only, 
as  now,  in  right  and  actual  control,  but  openly,  con- 
fessedly, to  all  and  by  all,  of  all  classes.  The  problem 
of  dealing  with  that  subject  world,  of  redeemed  as  of 
condemned  creatures,  is  one  for  His  supreme  perfec- 
tion. 


n^DEX. 


Administrator  of  Baptism,  224. 

Agnosticism,  85. 

Angelology,  237. 

Angels,  Creation  of,  237  ;  Doctrine  of,  237  ;  Fallen,  240. 

Annihilation,  249. 

Anthropological  Argument  for  the  Existence  of  God,  81. 

Anthropomorphism,  88,  96. 

Anthropopathisms,  96. 

Apocrypha,  22. 

Arguments  for  the  Existence  of  Gol,  79,  80,  81. 

Articles,  On  the  Church,  220. 

Atheism,  83  ;  Forms  of,  84. 

Atonement  of  Christ,  187. 

Atoning  Mediation,  The,  197  ;  Theories  of,  198. 

Baptism,  Manner  of,  224  ;  Proper  Administrator  of,  224  ;    Sacrament 

of,  223  ;  Subjects  of,  225  ;  XXVII.  Article,  on,  226. 
Baptismal  Regeneration,  227. 

Canon  of  New  Testament,  26  ;  Muriatorian,  30  ;  of  Old  Testament,  20, 

22  ;  of  Scripture,  19. 
Cave,  Professor,  on  Canon  of  Scripture,  24. 
Change,  The  Spiritual,  211  ;  Nature  of,  215. 
Chastisement,  Divine,  170. 

Christ,  Atonement  of,  187  ;  a  Teacher,  184  ;  Example  of,  185. 
Clirist's  Resurrection,   193 ;    Sufferings,   Efficacy   of,  184 ;    Sufferings 

Necessary,  186  ;  Work  in  its  Application,  202. 
Church  and  Sacraments,  219  ;  Visible  and  Invisible,  219,  220. 
Conditional  Immortality,  Theory  of,  249. 
Consequences  of  Sin,  166. 
Consubstantiated  Presence,  231. 
Contingency,  Argimient  from,  79. 
Cosmological  Argument  for  the  Existence  of  God,  79. 
Creation  of  Angels,  237  ;  of  the  Woild^  123  ;  not  Arrangement,  125. 


252  .  INDEX. 

Deism,  Definition  of,  86. 

Deistic  Naturalism,  11. 

Demoniacal  Possession,  242. 

Depravity,  Human,  151,  154,  158. 

Descartes,  129. 

Diatessaron  of  Tatiau,  30. 

Difficulties  as  Regards  Omniscience,  100. 

Divine  Attributes,  87  ;  Unity.  90. 

Doctrine  of  Angels,  237  ;  God,  74  ;  Man,  135  ;  Sin,  149  ;  Trinity,  113. 

Eden,  The  Test  of,  142. 

Efficacy  of  Christ's  Sufferings,  184. 

Election  and  Foreordination,  101. 

Endless  Punishment,  248. 

Eschatology,  245. 

Eternity  of  God,  95 

Eusebius,  Canon  of  New  Testament,  31. 

Evil,  Origin  of,  142. 

Evolution,  127. 

Exaltation,  Heavenly,  204,  207. 

Existence  of  God,  Arguments  for,  79,  80,  81  ;  Proofs  of,  76. 

Faith,  205. 

Fall  of  Man,  141,  147. 

Final  Judgment,  246,  247  ;  Perseverance,  217  ;  Resurrection,  246,  247:, 

Foreknowledge  not  Foreordination,  101. 

Foreordination  and  Election,  101. 

God,  Doctrine  of,  74  ;  Eternity  of,  95  ;  How  Known,  11  ;  Moral  Attri- 
butes of,  104  ;  Omnipotence  of,  97  ;  Omnipresence  of,  103  ;  Omnis- 
cience of,  98  ;  Proofs  of  Existence  of,  76  ;  Revealed  in  His  Works,  12  ; 
Scriptural  Statements  of,  75  ;  Spirituality  of,  93  ;  Wisdom  of,  108. 

Government,  Divine,  131. 

Governmental  Theory  of  Mediation,  199. 

Henotheism,  93. 

Hodge,  Definition  of  Inspiration,  54. 

Holiness  of  God,  105. 

Holy  Ghost,  Deity  of,  119  ;  Personality  of,  119  ;  Sin  Against,  164. 

Human  Personality,  The  Analogy  of  the  Divine,  88. 

Ignorance,  Sins  of,  162. 

Image  of  God,  Man  Made  in,  135. 

Immortality,  Theory  of  Conditional,  249. 


INDEX.  25;^ 

Inspiration,  Definitions  of,  54  ;  Evidences  of,  35  ;  Objections  to,  55  ;  of 

Scripture,  34  ;  of  the  Old  Testament,  41  ;  Theories  of,  47. 
Intercession  of  Christ,  194. 
Invisible  Church,  220. 
Ireugeus  of  Lyons,  29. 
Irresistible  Grace,  216. 

•Josephus,  20. 

•Judgment,  Final,  246,  247. 

Judicial  Theory  of  Mediation,  198. 

Justice  of  God,  107. 

Justification,  202. 

Justin  Martyr,  22,  29. 

Knapp,  Definition  of  Depravity,  159  ;  Definition  of  Inspiration,  54. 

Lay  Baptism,  225. 

Lord's  Supper,  The  Articles  on  the,  234  ;  Ecclesiastically  Defined,  235  ; 

Real  Presence  in,  232  ;  Sacrament  of,  228  ;  Sacrifice  in  the,  229. 
Love,  Divine  Attribute  of,  110. 

Man,  Primeval  Condition  of,  135. 

Manifestation  of  Christ  as  Saviour,  180. 

Martineau,  on  the  Idea  of  God,  74. 

Matheson,  Dr.,  Quoted,  93. 

Mediation,  The  Atoning,  197. 

Miracles,  69  ;  Naturalistic  Explanations  of,  78  ;  Not  necessarily  Contra- 
dictory to  Natural  Law,  134  ;  Objections  to,  72  ;  Scriptural  Words 
Descriptive  of,  71. 

Moral  Attributes  of  God,  104. 

Muriatorian  Canon,  30. 

Mystery,  64  ;  Three  Senses  of  Word,  65. 

Natural  Theology,  18,  14. 

Necessity  of  Revelation,  13. 

New  Testament,  Canon  of,  26. 

Norton,  Professor,  Estimate  of  Copies  of  Gospels,  38. 

Objections  to  Inspiration,  55  ;  to  Miracles,  72. 

Omnipotence  of  God,  97. 

Omnipresence  of  God,  103. 

Omniscience  of  God,  98. 

Origen,  Canon  of  the  New  Testament,  30. 

Origin  of  Evil,  142. 

Original  Sin,  Theories  of,  155,  156. 


254  INDEX. 

Pantheism,  84. 

Park,  Professor,  Definition  of  Inspiration,  54. 

Paternal  View  of  Mediation,  200. 

Personality  of  God,    89 ;    of  the  Holy  Ghost,    119 ;    of    Tempter  in 

Eden,  145. 
Philo,  20. 

Philosophy  of  Religion,  9. 
Polytheism,  91. 
Positivism,  85. 
Possession,  Demoniacal,  243. 
Predestination,  216. 
Presence  in  the  Lord's  Supper,  231. 
Preservation,  Divine,  128. 
Primitive  Revelation,  Possibility  of,  139. 
Probation,  Future,  173. 
Problem  of  Punishment,  250, 
Progress  of  the  Race,  85. 
Proofs  of  Revelation,  66. 
Providence,  Divine,  130. 

Provision  of  Christ's  Work  in  their  Reception,  204. 
Punishment,  Divine,  169  ;  Endless,  248  ;  Positive,  173  ;  Problem  of,  250. 

Race,  Unity  of  the,  138. 

Real  Presence,  232. 

Reason  as  Related  to  Revelati  r ,  15. 

Regeneration  in  Baptism,  22. 

Religion,  Definition  of,  4  ;  Difference  with  Theology,  4  ;  New  Testa- 
ment Names  of,  5  ;  Science  of,  6. 

Repentance,  Expiative  Effects  of,  178. 

Restorationism,  249. 

Resurrection,  Final,  246,  247  ;  of  Christ,  193. 

Revelation  a  Necessity,  13,  14  ;  Evidence  in,  of  the  Existence  of  God, 
82  ;  Human  Capacity  for,  14  ;  Relation  of  Reason  to,  15  ;  Proofs 
of,  66. 

Righteousness  of  God,  107. 

Sacrament  of  Baptism,  223  ;  of  the  Lord's  Supper,  228. 

Sacraments,  Christian,  222. 

Sacrifice  in  the  Lord's  Supper,  229. 

Sacrifices  for  Sin,  176. 

Salvation  from  Sin,  176  ;  Work  of  the  Spirit  in,  209. 

Sanday,  Professor,  on  Inspiration.  59. 

Sanctification,  303,  306. 


INDEX.  255 

Sataii^  241. 

Science  and  Secondary  Causes,  9  ;  and  Theology,  7,  8. 

Scriptural  Proof  of  the  Atonement,  188  ;  Divine  Unity,  90  ;  Doctrine  of 
Trinity,  116  ;  Eternity  of  God,  96  ;  Omnipresence  of  God,  103  ;  Spir- 
ituality of  God,  94. 

Sin,  Actual,  160  ;  Against  the  Holy  Ghost,  164  ;  Doctrine  of,  149  ;  in 
its  Consequences,  166  ;  Inward  Effects  of,  168  ;  Original,  150  ;  Salva- 
tion from,  176  ;  Various  Degrees  in,  161. 

Sins  of  Omission  and  Commission,  161. 

Smith,  Dean,  on  Creation,  135. 

Son,  Deity  of  the,  118. 

Son  of  God,  Christ  the,  181. 

Son  of  Man,  Christ  the,  180. 

Sources  of  Theological  Truth,  11. 

Sparrow,  Dr.,  on  Omnipotence  of  God,  97. 

Specific  Revelation,  13. 

Spinoza,  Pantheism  of,  84. 

Spirit,  Blessed,  in  Work  of  Salvation,  209. 

Spiritual  Change,  211  ;  Nature  of,  215. 

Spirituality  of  God, -93. 

Subjects  of  Baptism,  225. 

Substantiated  Presence,  231. 

Talmud,  21,  23. 

Tatian,  Diatessaron  of,  30. 

Teleological  Argument  for  the  Existence  of  God,  80. 

Temptation  in  Eden,  143. 

Tempter  in  Eden,  Personality  of,  145. 

Test  of  Eden,  The,  143. 

Theism,  Definition  of,  86. 

Theology,  Conflict  with  Science,  7,  8  ;  Definitions  of,  2,  3,  10 ;  Differ- 
ence with  Religion,  4  ;  Relation  to  Science,  7  ;  Sources  of  Material 
for,  3. 

Theory  of  Conditional  Immortality,  249. 

Theories  of  Inspiration,  47  ;  Mediation,  198  ;  Original  Sin,  155,  156. 

Total  Depravity,  159. 

Tradition,  Authority  of,  61. 

Traditionalist,  Definition  of,  63. 

Transgression,  First,  141. 

Transubstantiated  Presence,  231. 

Trinity,  Doctrine  of,  113  ;  Human  Analogies  of,  114  ;  Scriptural  Proof 
of,  116. 

Truth  of  God,  106. 


256  INDEX. 

Ultimate  Cause,  9. 

Unbelief  as  to  the  Divine  Existence,  83. 
Unity,  Divine,  90  ;  of  the  Race,  138. 
Universalism,  249. 

Whately,  Archbishop,  on  the  Trinity,  131. 
Wisdom  of  God,  108. 
World,  Creation  of,  133. 


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